Home Is Where You Are
by Ultrawoman
Summary: starts in Last Week Fights, This Week Tights; Rory decides not to go out on the set-up her grandma arranged and returns to Stars Hollow in time for Liz & TJ's wedding. Seeing Jess again is awkward and strange, but maybe this time they can rebuild their relationship in a healthier way than before. Literati, with a side of JavaJunkie.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Finally, we have lift off on the fic that won the poll! lol Well, it only beat out The Blame Game by one vote, so I guess it doesn't make that much of a difference. This is my fourth Literati story that I'm writing at the same time now, so fingers crossed I don't get mixed up! I'm sure you'll all tell me if I do ;) And, if you like this start of this one, please let me know!**

_**Disclaimer: All recognisable characters belong to Amy Sherman-Palladino and other folks that aren't me.**_

Chapter 1

Rory was pretty much mortified when she realised she had been caught out by her grandma. It never occurred to her for a second that the end time of her last final was so important because her grandmother was trying to set her up on a date! Not that the guy who she picked out wasn't cute and everything, but as soon as Emily was gone, Graham started to explain the nature of the event Rory was supposed to be attending. It wasn't really a date, not with a lot of his other friends present. In the end, he confessed it was a pub crawl more than anything else. Rory tried not to look judgemental of his choice when she carefully turned him down.

"Well, it's very nice of you to invite me, even though you were kind of rail-roaded," she smiled. "It's just, I'm not really the crawling to pubs type, sorry. So, thank you, but I think I'll just finish up packing and head straight home."

Graham didn't look too bothered by her rejection. As Rory expected, he was probably relieved to get away without having to babysit the granddaughter of an old acquaintance on his night of freedom and drinks with the guys.

"Okay. Well, it was nice meeting you, Rory," he told her with a smile and a wave as he moved towards the door.

"You too," she confirmed, letting out a sigh she hadn't know she was holding in until Graham was finally gone.

Reaching for her drink, she downed the rest of the contents of the cup in one, wincing at the messed up taste. All the alcohol left on their floor of the building mixed together did not taste good, but the buzz was actually quite nice, especially when added to the high of getting out of college for the Summer. Finally, she was headed home to Stars Hollow for a good long stretch of free time. It felt great.

* * *

"Hello?" called Rory as she came through the front door of her home, laden down with a couple of bags.

There were so many boxes still to bring from the car, but she was kind of hoping for help with that. She called for her Mom twice before Lorelai actually appeared, rushing down the stairs in a pretty pink dress.

"Hey, sweets!" she greeted Rory with a wide grin and an enveloping hug that her daughter happily returned.

"Wow, look at you," she commented, when the hug was over. "Very Renaissancey."

"Thank you, daughter dear," Lorelai curtseyed appropriately. "I didn't think you'd be back yet, if I'd known I'd've made sure you had a dress and a flower crown and..."

"It's fine," Rory literally waved away her mother's concerns. "I wasn't even invited to the wedding, so..."

"Honey, it's Luke's sister getting married. You would be invited in a heart-beat if they knew you were here."

Rory squirmed under her mother's gaze. She had her reasons for not minding that she wasn't going to Liz's wedding, most of which she didn't really want to talk about. If her brain had just caught up with her enthusiasm to get home, she might have timed her journey differently. An hour later, maybe even a half hour, and her Mom would already have left for the ceremony, Rory never would've had to feel awkward like this.

"Really, I'm fine," she forced a smile, moving past her mom to grab the bags she had dumped in the hall. "I don't need to be there, I just..."

"The J word?" asked Lorelai, already sure she was right, more so when Rory wouldn't look at her when she next spoke.

"Mom, I told you, you can just call him Jess, it's fine."

Lorelai followed as Rory dragged her bags to her room and dumped them on the bed.

"See, you say that, but then you won't come to the wedding and I think it's because you're avoiding the guy, which I don't hate the idea of, but why should you?" she paused to grab her kid by the shoulders and turn her around to face her. "Honey, this is our town, your town, way more than it was ever his. You should be at this wedding!"

Rory smiled at that.

"I don't think anything qualifies me to be at a wedding more than being the bride's son qualifies Jess," she said definitely. "But if it would really make you happy, I'm sure I can throw together something Renaissance-esque and catch you up," she sighed, knowing her mom was not going to let this go.

"Yes, you should do that!" Lorelai enthused, hugging her daughter tightly one more time. "Oh, sweetheart, I'm just so glad to have you home!"

Rory was glad to be home too and told her mother as much as they parted. Lorelai had to go finish getting ready herself, her hair wasn't finished yet and she needed to get her flower crown pinned up there. Plus she was now insisting on giving Rory her first attempt at a similar crown that hadn't gone quite so well, but she would fix it and it would be fine.

Rory was only half-listening to the rambling as she dug in her wardrobe for anything she could pass off as remotely Renaissance. Even then she wasn't entirely concentrating on the task at hand. It was going to be so weird seeing Jess again after the way they left things last time. He told her he loved her, and then he just ran. Well, to be more accurate, he got in his car and drove, but it amounted to the same thing, running out when things got serious.

Rory hadn't known what to think or feel about Jess from that day to this. Maybe seeing him again was what she needed, to get a little closure or something. She had thought she was over him once upon a time, but the more Paris and too many others talked about Rory's 'dry spell' the more she thought that Jess had to be the reason she wasn't dating anyone else. Even in his absence, he was there in her head all the time. They never officially broke up, he just took off one day and didn't come back. She told him she was done with it, on the day she graduated from Chilton, no less. Since then she had seen him on just one other day, the day he said he loved her. The very memory of it made a shudder course right through her body, and for the life of her Rory couldn't say what the over-riding emotion was that caused that physical reaction.

"Okay, so it's not as perfect as I would like," said Lorelai as she came bounding back into Rory's room with a ring of flowers in her hand. "But I think if you wear that pale green number you got in the sale a couple of months ago, it could work."

"Good thinking," Rory smiled, immediately turning back to her closet and looking for the very dress her mom was talking about.

Even as they both got dressed and fixed their hair, acting as girly as women getting ready for any event were want to do, Rory couldn't stop her mind wandering, or her stomach churning if she were honest. Going to a wedding was a fun idea, but seeing Jess just made her nervous. She had no idea what to expect.

* * *

It was a real surprise to see her. At first Jess thought he might be hallucinating the most beautiful girl he ever met in a long flowing green dress and carefully made ring of flowers atop her head. When she sat down with Lorelai and Luke, looking all around at the festivities of the wedding, he knew for sure it was definitely Rory.

She wasn't supposed to be here, Jess was sure on that. He had asked Luke if she would be coming and his uncle confirmed she wouldn't be home from college until later today or maybe even tomorrow. Apparently things had changed, since Jess couldn't imagine Luke lied, not about Rory of all people.

He was sneaking glances at her the whole time he was waiting for Liz to appear on her ridiculous carriage. Rory didn't seem to notice, and Jess was mostly glad about it. He couldn't imagine she would really want to see him, and yet she had to know he was here at the wedding. He was giving away the bride for crying out loud, and the way people talked in this town, there was no possible way she didn't know.

It was only when Patty approached the front of the crowd, saying something that caused Lorelai to jump up and run, that Rory finally looked in Jess' direction. Their eyes met for a brief second and he tried for a smile that probably didn't quite come out right. She looked away so fast, Jess was surprised she didn't give herself whiplash. He had no idea how bad Rory felt for doing that, though Luke noticed from two seats over.

"Ah, this is awkward for you," he said, noticing how quickly Rory had looked away from the far end of the aisle. "Because of Jess."

"Yeah, a little," she admitted, facing front on purpose. "It's not like I didn't know he would be here, he's your family after all..."

"Hey, you are too," said Luke, patting her arm lightly. "Oh, except... well, not family in a way that'd make you and Jess dating wrong, not that you're dating now, but... You know what I mean, right?" he asked desperately, hoping to God he didn't have to try and explain any further.

"I get it," said Rory with a genuine smile as she looked his way, finding his sigh of relief just a little amusing. "And thank you, I appreciate what you were trying to say, and I'm fine, honestly. Things with me and Jess, they were just so... unresolved, I guess. It feels weird seeing him and not really knowing where either of us stand."

"Uh-huh," Luke nodded. "I get that, Jess might've mentioned what happened last time he was here. For what it's worth, I think he knows he handled things badly."

Rory squirmed under Luke's gaze then. He meant well, she was sure, but talking to Luke about her relationship with Jess, even hearing him talk about it, it was weird in the extreme. Luke was so much a father figure in her life, even though Rory did have a real dad that she loved so much. With him being Jess' uncle too, it felt strange to be talking about things like what she and Jess once meant to each other, what they might still mean now.

"And I'm back!" Lorelai declared as she returned to her seat between Luke and Rory. "Dress all fixed, and this wedding is a go!"

"That's good."

Luke shifted uncomfortably, knowing he had to say something, anything else, to remove the awkwardness of his previous comment. Looking from Lorelai to Rory and back, he smiled.

"Did I mention that I am very honoured to be sitting with the two prettiest girls in Stars Hollow?" he told them. "You both look beautiful."

"Oh, Mr Danes!" gasped Lorelai, in a Southern belle accent as she pretended to fan herself. "Well, we're just mighty glad you approve."

The laughter between the three then felt good, at least until they were forced into silence by music and the start of the ceremony. A carriage arrived, and out stepped Liz in her perfectly sewn up dress. She grabbed Jess' offered arm and her son escorted her down the aisle to where T.J. waited, in the tights he refused to shut up about! Rory couldn't help but smile as Liz was 'handed over' to her husband-to-be, and the happy couple shared a look of love. It was oddly beautiful.

Of course, it was very distracting when Jess moved to sit right in front of her. Rory couldn't think of much else and almost felt the need to lean back in her seat just so she was a little further away from her ex. Lorelai had to have noticed.

"You okay, hon?" she checked.

"Fine," Rory promised.

All attention then went to the strumming of a guitar as the so-called minister appeared from the gazebo, singing about childhood toys and games of all the crazy things. There was no time for Rory to be thinking about Jess and what would happen next with them right now, she was way too busy trying not to laugh. Unfortunately, no amount of serious topics her mother came up with seemed to help either of them, or Luke for that matter, to be calm and straight-faced. It was physically painful not to laugh out loud!

Then things changed. The song was over and the vows began. Liz and T.J. might not be the youngest people, the most eloquent, or even the best at relationships in the past, but Rory could see they were definitely in love. Her eyes drifted from the happy couple getting married to the back of her ex-boyfriend's head. She had been in love once, maybe twice if she counted Dean, but Jess definitely had to be a consideration too. She never told him she loved him, not implicitly. She said she thought she had been in love, during their final phone call on her graduation day, but when he said those three little words to her, she hadn't replied. To be fair, he hadn't really given her a chance, but even now Rory wasn't sure what her response would've been.

As the minister (or minstrel, or whatever he was) pronounced that Liz and T.J. were now husband and wife, Rory's attention came back to the matter at hand. A quiet applause and a few cheers rippled through the crowd as the newly married couple sealed their vows with a kiss. It was only when Lorelai glanced at her with a look of concern that Rory even noticed she had started to cry.

_To Be Continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Woah, so the first chapter of this fic really made a splash, huh? Well, I'm glad, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised - you peops did vote for me to write it after all! lol Anyway, thanks for all the feedback, and now from the wedding we head to the reception...**

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 2

"Ah, the famous Rory!" Liz yelled rather too loudly when Luke introduced them. "Y'know I have heard nothin' but wonderful things about you from Lorelai, and Luke, and just about everybody," she smiled widely.

"Oh, well, that's good," Rory blushed at the over-enthusiastic compliments she seemed to be getting from Jess' mom.

That was how she always thought of Liz, never really as Luke's sister, not even as simply 'the bride' for today. This was the woman who Jess claimed to care about and yet Rory knew didn't always treat him as well she should have. It was strange meeting her, not knowing whether she should thank Liz for bringing such an amazing person into the world, or give her a telling off for not raising him as well as he deserved. In the end, Rory did neither, just nodded along in awkward conversation, until her own mother saw how freaked she was and steered her away towards the food.

"Thank you, Mom," she said with a sigh. "Honestly, I should've been fine, but..."

"The Jess factor. I get it," Lorelai nodded knowingly. "Seriously though, you should get some of this Renaissance style food. I have heard only good things about the turkey legs."

"Duly noted," Rory nodded, looking around.

Her eyes caught Jess' for a moment and she turned back again extremely quickly. Rory couldn't help but think maybe that pub crawl she had been offered to go on might've been a better idea than this, and yet she was glad to be home if she were honest. It was just having Jess in very close proximity threw her head into a spin. Every time she looked at him, a million memories flooded her mind, and chief among them was his last words to her a few months ago - 'I love you'.

Shaking her head free of too many thoughts, Rory concentrated on piling food onto a plate. Eating your feelings didn't work for most girls, they just gained weight and got all the more depressed about their lives. The Gilmores were different, and Rory had never been more glad of her excellent metabolism. She planned to eat until she just couldn't eat no more, maybe drink too, if she could get away with it. If there was ever an occasion where a drink would be welcome, tonight was the night.

Taking up a spare seat along the table, Rory set down her plate and contemplated the food on it. She was pretty sure it would all be delicious and yet suddenly eating it didn't appeal at all.

"Hey, hon?" said Lorelai then, getting her attention from the other side of the table. "Watch this for me, would ya?" she urged her, putting down a glass of wine with a wink.

Rory smiled at her mother's usual mind reading skills when it came to her, and nodded her thanks. She picked up the glass just as soon as her Mom was gone and took a long drink. It should help, and yet Rory had never really understood how.

"Wow, things must be bad."

His voice beside her made her jump to the point where she almost spilt the wine everywhere and spat a little for good measure.

"Sorry," Jess winced when he realised what he caused.

Rory wiped the back of her hand across her mouth and forced a smile.

"Hi," she greeted her ex awkwardly.

"Hi," he replied, gesturing to the chair beside her. "Do you mind...?"

"No, it's fine," she told him, though honestly she felt anything but fine about this moment. "Um, how are you, Jess?"

"I'm good, fine," he shrugged non-comittally. "This whole thing really isn't my scene, but Liz wanted me here, and Luke... It's not so bad," he ended eventually and Rory couldn't help but smile.

Jess really liked for the world to believe he didn't care about anybody, a reaction to others not always caring for him as much as they should, she supposed. The fact was, he was actually a really sweet person. He had loved her, and he cared a lot about Luke, even if he would rather not say so. Rory bit her lip when she realised where her thought tended. Talking Jess up in her own head was no good right now. She still ought to be mad at him for dropping the bomb of 'I love you' then getting in his car and driving off without another word.

"How's Yale?" he asked in the awkward silence.

"Fine," Rory replied, a little surprised to realise that elicited a brief burst of laughter from Jess.

"Can you tell which word is being over-used in this conversation?" he asked her.

Rory tried not to smile as she answered.

"No, I think we're fine."

They both laughed awkwardly, looking anywhere but at each other. It just so happened that when they looked out across the dance floor, there was one couple directly in both their lines of sight. Luke had Lorelai in his arms, waltzing her around the floor. Neither Rory nor Jess really saw that coming, and yet they both smiled at the scene they were witnessing.

While Rory continued to watch her Mom, smiling and laughing as she was danced around the floor by Luke, Jess' focus switched to watching her. He never loved anyone like he loved Rory, and certainly hadn't missed anyone as much as he missed her these past few months. She was as beautiful and sweet as she had ever been, and all he had wanted to do all day was get a chance to talk to her. Finally, here they were, and none of the great speeches he had in his head before seemed to be there now. He just wanted to be close to her, that was all.

"So, you wanna dance?"

The question from his own lips seemed to come as a shock to Jess as much as to Rory. She turned wide eyes upon him, her mouth opening and closing twice before any sound actually came out.

"Are you serious?" she checked, already knowing he must be or he never would've have asked. "Um, okay, yeah," she agreed as he stood and held out a hand for her to take.

Rory felt herself shaking as Jess led her to the dance floor. This was ridiculous. They had danced together before, only slow swaying dances but that's all this really was anyway, at least it could be if they wanted. The trouble was, all the times they danced together before had been when they were dating. Honestly, there was never an official break up, neither of them dumped the other, it just sort of ended, and yet he loved her. Rory couldn't even look at Jess as she put her hands to his shoulders and felt his arms at her waist. They swayed gently to the music and it felt good and familiar in a way, but also strange. Rory had never been so caught between wanting to stay here forever and run like the wind.

"So, I need to apologise to you," said Jess then getting her attention. "Last time I was here, I... Well, saying what I did and then just driving away before you could process, it wasn't my finest hour," he shook his head. "I'm sorry, Rory, and not just for that but for a lot of things that I handled badly."

"It's okay," she smiled up at him. "Well, it's not exactly okay, but... forget it," she told him, looking away again.

That was kind of the point. Jess really didn't want to just forget it all. He wanted to talk about it, for maybe the first time in his life he realised it was the only way forward. Not that he would ever admit to reading self help books or listening to those dumb tapes Luke's bought, but they had changed things for him. Jess had known for a long time that he loved Rory and that maybe telling her was for the best, it was why he had done so last time he was here. He handled it badly and he knew it too. You couldn't confess that kind of thing and then bolt, but he had been so panicked by what she might say back. If Rory loved him, he still didn't know if they could make it work, and if she didn't, well, then Jess was pretty sure his heart would be broken for good.

Finally he had this opportunity to at least try and have a decent conversion about the most important relationship of his life, and Rory was the one backing off. That was new, but Jess could understand it. After all the times he bottled up or ran away, he could completely understand why Rory wasn't keen to get into things with him now, but it really did suck that they never seemed to be in the same head-space at the same time. They had been so on the same page in the beginning, what seemed like a life time ago now.

"So, how long are you staying?" asked Rory, forcing herself to meet his eyes again, those soulful eyes she had always felt she could drown in.

"I don't know," Jess admitted, staring down into the depths of beautiful blue looking back at him. "I was gonna leave tonight, right after this was over, but maybe... maybe I could stay longer?"

It was a question more than a statement of fact and Rory couldn't fail to notice. Whether he was asking her if she wanted him to stay or just if she minded, the answer was still the same. As crazy as it might make her, Rory wanted Jess to be here longer than one night. She wanted to be given a chance to process things he didn't give her a chance to properly consider the last time. She needed to reconcile a whole bunch of feelings and mixed up thoughts whilst he was still around.

"It would be nice, if you stayed longer," she said vaguely, with the merest hint of a smile playing at her lips.

Jess smirked because he just could help it, spinning Rory out of his arms very suddenly and then quickly back in. She laughed out of surprise more than anything, a beautiful sound that he was more than happy to have caused.

"Then I'll stay longer," he told her, smiling widely. "Thank you, Rory."

"You're welcome, Jess."

* * *

"Hey, hon," Lorelai smiled as Rory stepped out of her bedroom in the morning. "Coffee?"

"Oh yeah," her daughter nodded as she took a seat at the table.

There was this dopey smile on her face, and Lorelai hardly dare ask what had caused it. Last night, Lorelai may have been somewhat distracted by Luke being the sweetest guy ever, but she had noticed Rory spending quite a bit of time with Jess. After everything that had happened, she almost dreaded hearing that they were getting close again, and yet Rory's smile had to be a positive sign, she supposed.

"So, great shindig of a wedding last night, huh?" said Lorelai as she handed her daughter a cup of coffee and joined her at the table.

"Yeah, it was cool," Rory smiled, sipping her hot beverage. "Although if I had to hear T.J.'s speech about tights one more time, I thought I was going to go crazy. He was really into those things."

"I know, right?" Lorelai laughed. "Poor guy is going to be heart-broken when Liz gets him back in regular pants. She's not really what I thought she'd be."

"Me either," her daughter agreed. "She seems nice, but then people can change, I guess."

"Did Jess talk about his mom much when you two were dating?" she asked, testing the water about the dating situation as much as anything else.

Rory could tell something was up, and she could easily figure out what too. Of course her Mom was worried about her getting close to Jess again. After the way he hurt her before, it was only natural, and Rory loved how much her mother cared. At the same time, she kind of wished Lorelai would just come out and ask the question she really wanted the answer to instead of beating around the bush. She didn't usually do that, but where Jess was conercned, things had always been awkward and delicate between the Gilmore girls.

"Jess loves his mom, I know he does," she shrugged. "They just have a difficult relationship. She wasn't the best when he was younger. I guess she had him really young and, well, she just wasn't as together as you," she smiled at Lorelai who grinned back.

"Yeah, it's not easy being a young mom, but I have to say, Liz did seem more into guys and pot than her son, at least from the way she was talking yesterday," she sighed. "Kind of made me feel bad for Jess."

Rory was a little surprised to hear that and yet at the same time not so much. Her mom was a really cool person, she cared and didn't automatically judge other people's situations most of the time. She had her reasons for making judgements about Jess before, reasons that Rory understood only too well. It would be good if they could all start afresh for as long as he was visiting Stars Hollow this time, and this was what Rory told her mother.

"I just... I want things to be like before, when we first met. Before everything else happened," she said, waving her hand in some vague gesture towards the past. "I think it could be good for us, me and Jess, to be friends again."

Lorelai tried not to smile. Exes becoming friends after a break up was way more complicated than Rory seemed to think. She and Christopher managed pretty well, but those were very special circumstances. This was different.

"Friends, huh?" she said, nodding her head. "Well, that'd be great, but don't I remember you telling me that last time Jess was here he told you that, oh yes, he loved you?" she checked, already knowing it was true, of course.

"He apologised for that," said Rory, staring into her coffee. "For the way he handled things then, and before too," she shifted awkwardly in her seat. "But hey, what about you and Luke?" she asked suddenly looking up.

Lorelai knew the subject change was a deliberate evasive manoeuvre, but she let it go. Honestly, she did kind of want to talk about the situation with Luke anyway, and was happy to begin waxing lyrical on how things had been changing lately. Rory was just glad to talk about anything but Jess for a little while, and the idea of her mom and Luke dating was actually kind of great. At least one out of the two of them had a decent relationship to focus on right now!

_To Be Continued..._


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: This fic is taking it's time to really get anywhere, but hopefully you'll all like it anyway. You certainly seem to be loving it so far - thanks so much for all the reviews. You rock! :)**

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 3

Going into Luke's never felt so strange. At the wedding reception on Saturday night, Rory had been only too happy to agree that Jess should stay in Stars Hollow a while. Now he was here, a fixture in the diner as he had been in the beginning when they first met, and it was the oddest feeling for Rory to walk in and see him there.

It was early, before the Monday morning rush. Luke was handling the counter just fine by himself and so Jess was stood at the far end, eyes locked onto a book. He never even looked up when Rory and Lorelai walked in, which was oddly hurtful somehow. Rory pushed the thought out of her head the second it made an appearance.

They grabbed a table, barely talking, which was weird in and of itself. They had this whole conversation outside about Lorelai maybe dating Luke, and Rory couldn't believe how much she had to calm her mom down before they could go inside.

One waltz and some pretty words, and suddenly Lorelai was weak at the knees and babbling like a brook. Rory could understand it, this was Luke after all. It was kind of a big deal that these two were finally getting somewhere in their relationship, making the leap from such good friends to something more. When Rory thought about it, she and Jess had been friends before they got together. Not for even a fraction of the time that Luke and Lorelai had been friends, but it felt like it sometimes. There were occasions when Rory had looked at Jess and just felt like she'd known him forever, or that she should know him forever, something like that. They had so much in common, and he made her feel like nobody else ever could. Rory hadn't realised she had zoned out staring at the guy until Lorelai literally poked her in the arm.

"Hey, kid!" she repeated until finally Rory looked at her. "Little distracted there, huh?" she smiled, though it didn't seem like a genuine expression somehow.

Rory was busted. They both knew she had been caught staring at Jess, and that wasn't really a good thing. The last thing she needed was to be reverting back to her school girl self and falling for the rebel just because it was familiar. In part at least, Rory blamed Paris and the other girls at the dorm. They wouldn't stop talking about how she was having this dry spell when it came to guys and dating. Rory denied it was true at first, but the more time went on, the more she wondered if she knew the reason why that was.

It had been ridiculous to consider even for a moment that it all came back to Dean. Sure, it had felt strange when he married Lindsay, it still felt strange now. To think that a guy who had been a friend as well as a boyfriend was now not supposed to talk to Rory because his wife said so. She couldn't wrap her head around it. It made Rory all the more determined to keep Dean in her life just because somebody said she shouldn't. It didn't matter that it was childish and dumb, she was sticking to her guns and that was that.

Then there was Jess. He had been someone she couldn't or shouldn't have when she was dating Dean. She often wondered if that was part of his appeal, because it was considered dumb and reckless of her to fall for a guy like him. Maybe some of what drew her in was his mile-wide rebellious streak, she wouldn't deny that, but listing reasons in her head to be head-over-heels for Jess came all too easily even now. When she turned to glance back at him again, whilst Lorelai awkwardly gave their order to Luke, she realised he was gone. Rory soon found out why Jess was no longer at the counter when suddenly he spoke.

"Hey."

She physically jumped as she turned the opposite way and saw him stood next to her with his jacket on.

"Hi," she smiled. "Um, you're going...?" she asked vaguely, almost afraid to finish the question.

"Just out for a walk," he confirmed, with a hint of a smirk he couldn't help.

The idea of him leaving town certainly seemed to freak her out, and Jess wouldn't deny that made him happy. She had said he should stay, though neither of them had really established what he was hanging around for. They needed to talk, that much Jess knew for sure. As much as they had said at the wedding, as close as they'd been in their dancing, nothing really got resolved or even remotely figured out. Maybe now was a good time.

"You want to...?" he asked, gesturing towards the door, even as his eyes drifted to the flirty banter between her mom and his uncle.

She smiled as she followed his eyes line and then nodded her agreement.

"Mom, I'll be back," said Rory quickly as she grabbed up her jacket and followed Jess out the door.

Lorelai didn't really get a chance to answer, but she did stare after the young non-couple with a serious expression.

"Yeah, you really don't like that, do you?" said Luke with a heavy sigh.

He was glad to have Jess here and honestly he was even more glad to see his nephew and Rory building bridges. Whilst it was true that most of the mistakes had been on Jess' side with that relationship, Rory wasn't quite as perfect as some of the people in this town would like to think. Luke loved that girl like a daughter but she and Jess both had their issues to work through. Maybe now after their time apart, a little space to get perspective and all, perhaps they could fix what was broken and at least be friends again. Lorelai didn't look convinced or at all comfortable.

"I just don't want her heart broken again," she said, looking up at Luke. "She always said he didn't hurt her that bad, but..."

She shook her head and Luke understood without her ever finishing the sentence. He knew she was right. Both Rory and Jess acted as if their relationship was a throwaway item, and yet anybody with eyes could see how they felt about each other. It was a special kind of bond those two had, and Luke would love for them to be able to work it out. He wasn't sure that was the best thing to tell Lorelai right now, especially when the two of them were finally getting closer. He stuck to a more neutral response to her worries.

"For what it's worth, Jess knows he handled things wrong," he told her. "He's growing up. It's taking time and effort, but he really is."

"I hope so," Lorelai nodded, finding a genuine smile when she glanced up at Luke then. "But anyway, you're still coming to the inn on the weekend, right? For the run through?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," he answered awkwardly and Lorelai was suddenly frowning.

She had hoped things were good with them. It was a little strange with Luke taking her to Liz's wedding and the real live date they had just yesterday. It wasn't really anything they hadn't done before but there was a closeness, things were changing. She liked it, and yet now he was backing off so suddenly, which made Lorelai worry.

"You don't have to come," she said, trying to sound normal and natural, not whiney and sad as she felt about it.

"It's not that I don't want to," he assured her. "Really, I just... I wasn't expecting Jess to stay long, and now I kinda feel bad leaving him here when I'm there..."

"Bring him," said Lorelai immediately. "Seriously, just bring him along with. We'll put you in Room 7, that has twin beds, it'll be fine."

She was shrugging like it was no big deal and yet after the conversation they just had about Jess and Rory, Luke couldn't quite believe her nonchalance, but he wouldn't argue. Things were going too well to screw up right now, and he honestly did think that given the chance to talk things through, Rory and Jess could at least have a healthier friendship if nothing else. That would be good for the both of them, if they could just get some communication going.

* * *

"So, it's a good thing I asked you out here to walk rather than talk," said Jess as he and Rory continued on down the street.

They had been all but silent since the moment they left the diner, the pair of them looking off in opposite directions, hands in their pockets, almost pretending the other one wasn't there. Of course that would have been impossible even if they tried it.

"It's just kind of awkward still," Rory smiled as she bravely looked his way. "C'mon, Jess, you have to admit this is weird. I mean, we were friends and then we were together, and now... now I don't know what we are," she shrugged.

Jess had to admit he didn't know either. In the beginning, he wanted Rory and couldn't have her, then when he got her he knew he hadn't exactly been the world's best boyfriend. She wasn't perfect, no way, but he had been the main source of the screw ups in their relationship. These were the things he really needed to be saying out loud rather than in his head, he knew that. As they walked by the school, he made a deliberate turn. Rory followed out of instinct more than anything else, and then there they were in their old familiar spot.

"Of all the things about this crazy town I was glad to get away from, I missed this," he said, moving to sit down in the centre of the bridge with his legs dangling over the side.

"The place or the awkward company?" she dared to ask, knowing she was blushing as she sat down beside him.

"Both," he smirked as she joined him. "I don't know, maybe it all goes back to Luke pushing me off this thing that first week, maybe that's how it became the place I always went to when I had to get away, to think, to just be, y'know?"

"You didn't always come here alone," she said, looking out across the water because it was so much easier than facing him.

Jess knew very well what she meant. The first time he brought Rory here was the day he won her picnic basket at some crack-pot event the town was holding, but they had been here so many more times since then. When they were dating it became their spot more than it was ever his own. They sat here and read in comfortable silence or out-loud to each other sometimes. They talked for hours, they stopped talking and let their feelings take over as much as a public place allowed. A good portion of their relationship had taken place on this row of planks across the lake, and now here they were again.

"Y'know when you left... for California," she told him softly, looking down at her own hands in her lap. "I used to come here. I'd tell my mom I was fine, because I wanted to be fine, but then I'd come here and... and I missed you, and I hated you, and... and I loved you," she sniffled as all the emotion came rushing back and threatened to overwhelm her.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, itching to touch her, to hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay, but he couldn't, not now.

He gave up the right to be all she needed when he walked out on her, not just once but twice. It was why they were here now, so he could put some of it right at least, but it felt like a very long road to getting back to anywhere close to what they were to each other, if they ever really could be.

"I'm sorry too," she said then, turning to look at him. "I mean, I wasn't exactly the greatest girlfriend. So many times I accused you and I made unfair comparisons," she shook her head. "I think it hurt all the more because I knew why you left. Yeah, some of it was about your dad and dropping out, but you left because I wasn't what you needed, I couldn't... You couldn't talk to me, and that has to be as much my fault as it was yours."

Jess didn't know how to answer that. Instinct made him want to tell her it was never her fault at all, and yet logic and reality dictated that he couldn't. She was right. She did make it harder to talk to her about things. She accepted him for what he was but at the same time urged him to be more. There had been unflattering comparisons to Forester and accusations that were unfounded. He understood sometimes, but it still hurt. When Jess found out he couldn't take Rory to prom, it was the final straw. His father appeared and he had somewhere to run to, so he did. It was cowardly and ultimately stupid, but at the time it had seemed like the best thing for both of them.

"We both made mistakes," he said eventually. "We were young, it happens."

"We're not exactly old now," she smirked the way he so often did. "But older, I guess, maybe a little wiser."

"Gotta hope so," he nodded.

A companionable silence settled over them as it had so often before when they were alone together with their own thoughts. Before it was awkward, when they were walking down here, both knowing things needed to be said and neither knowing where to start. Now they were on the same page, at least up to the point where Jess left town. His return and confession six months ago was still hanging over them, but it didn't seem so scary now the other stuff had been dealt with. That was a whole other conversation they would have to have later, about whether or not Jess still loved Rory and if she could ever feel the same. For now it was nice to just sit here together, looking out across the water, knowing that they could just be in each others company and not worry so much about what came next.

_To Be Continued..._


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Okay, time to start the Dragonfly run through! But before that, thank you all for the lovely reviews - you're all awesome! :)**

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 4

When Luke and Jess arrived at the Dragonfly Inn for the run-through weekend, they were expecting something perhaps a little more professional than the sight that met their eyes. Lorelai was having a mini-fight at the desk with Michel, whilst Rory ran back and forth doing goodness only knew what. Meanwhile there seemed to be a lot of construction worker types carrying doors around. It was a little bizarre.

"Should we maybe go out and come back in?" asked Jess, looking to his uncle for a response that never came as Lorelai rushed over the moment she noticed they were there.

"Hey!" she grinned, even as Michel continued to mutter in French in the background, slamming the drawer under the reception desk with a thud.

Jess looked away when Lorelai leaned in to hug Luke and he awkwardly hugged back. Rory came flying by at just that moment, sparing Jess a smile as she went off on her mission to placate an irate Frenchman. It was strange, oddly reminiscent of the old days before they even dated. Catching meaningful glances behind the backs of their guardians, her boyfriend, anybody who might judge, that all seemed like a lifetime ago and just yesterday at the same time.

"So, you'll be in room seven," said Lorelai then, snapping Jess back to the present. "Your key is right here" she handed it over to Luke an then looked past him. "And that, right there, is your door!"

Jess followed her gaze the same way Luke did, only to see Forester, of all people, with the door bearing a number seven in his hands. Dean smiled at Luke and then glared when he realised who was stood slightly behind him. Jess knew that given half the chance he would be battered to death with that door. The fact Dean could do nothing to him here without causing a scene made him smirk all the more.

"So, we follow the monkey, right?" he checked, not even caring that Luke glared at him, caring even less if Dean heard as they mounted the stairs one after the other.

"Well, that could've been better planned... if we had a plan for who puts what door on what room," Lorelai considered aloud.

"I hadn't thought about them running into each other here today," said Rory as she appeared beside her, fingers lacing and unlacing nervously. "But this is... I mean, it's ancient history, right? I haven't dated either of them for over a year."

"Yeah, I'm not sure that really makes a difference," her mother told her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and squeezing. "That's the downside to being as cool as we are, kid. Hard for guys to get over us."

Rory rolled her eyes at Lorelai's comment, but she couldn't help but wonder if there was any truth inside the joke. For a while now, she had wondered if Dean ever really got over her. It seemed big-headed to expect him to be pining for her whilst being married to Lindsay, but he showed signs of it. She had thought maybe she was just imagining it, inventing it because she was lonely and dateless and Dean had always been there, strong and sturdy, reliable and sweet. Now Jess was here, things felt very different again.

It was kind of like the first time when he arrived in Stars Hollow and turned her head. Jess Mariano was like no other guy Rory ever met, and very different to Dean, that was for sure. Sometimes it confused Rory to think that she could have loved both of them, but then she considered that the feelings of love she had for her first and second boyfriend were very different, to go along with the fact they shared few similarities themselves. Dean was like a really good friend, and the love Rory had for him matched that role. She had definitely been attracted to his looks in the beginning too, he was certainly cute and all, but it was never the deep-seated passion she felt for Jess, there was never the magnetic pull that drew her to him even when she was supposed to be committed elsewhere. The love she had barely ever admitted to feeling for Jess was always so strong and definite, and yet it had taken her the longest time to realise it was there. Maybe because it just came so naturally to her, without ceremony or fanfare. There was no moment when she suddenly felt lightning hit her, it was there from the first day, she just hadn't known how to identify it until now.

"Hey, you okay, hon?" asked Lorelai when she realised her daughter had completely zoned out.

"Oh, er, yeah," Rory shook her head clear of the deep thoughts that had settled in. "Y'know, doors not withstanding, I think it's all going pretty well so far," she said of the inn's practice run.

Lorelai smiled, ready to agree with her until suddenly she heard familiar voices warring by the door. Emily and Richard had arrived, and they didn't seem happy about it.

"Spoke too soon!"

* * *

"Don't worry, Sookie, I'm sure one of your kitchen staff will start sucking soon."

Rory wasn't really sure what was going on with her, but she hoped that she said the right thing. When she turned in the kitchen doorway, she collided with the solid chest of Dean and looked appropriately startled that he was there.

"She wants her staff to suck?" he checked, having clearly caught the end of that conversation.

"Apparently," Rory agreed, shaking her head. "Um, I didn't know you were still here."

"Just got the last door hung and everything tided away," he told her, shifting awkwardly.

Rory's eyes went all around the dining room, which was mercifully empty right now. She could use being without an audience when she was caught in a tight spot with her first ex. There had been enough staring when some of the guests saw her with the second ex. Rory had to wonder how anybody ever coped with dating. She was only glad she didn't get a college boyfriend yet. Three exes would be way too many, she wasn't coping well with just two in the same place at the same time.

"So, you're leaving now, right?" asked Rory, feeling a little bad that it came out almost hopeful.

"I guess," Dean agreed with a nod. "But, I... Rory, please tell me you and him aren't... After everything, can't you see that he's no good for you?"

The 'him' needed no explanation, they were both very aware that he was talking about Jess. Rory didn't want to hear this, not from Dean most especially. It was comparing one guy to the other that always led to badness. Just because Dean was nice to her in the beginning, Jess had been perfectly nice too. Other people didn't see the nice side of her second boyfriend as much as the first, but she always had. No, he hadn't treated her well in the end, but she had done her share of forcing him away too. As for Dean, he had married somebody else, and whilst Rory wasn't going to stand for being told she wasn't allowed to see her ex even as a friend anymore, she wasn't looking for more from Dean. Seeing a married man as anything more than a friend would be so wrong and make Rory the kind of woman she would never want to be. Besides, in a straight out contest between Dean and Jess, the latter would win, he always had before. Not that Rory was necessarily being given the choice of either of them, but right now she knew more than ever who she would choose. Dean looked down into her eyes the way he used to years ago and Rory waited for the old familiar feelings to come back to her. There was a flicker of something, she supposed there always would be, but it was nothing like the flames that used to take over her heart. Certainly nothing like what she felt around Jess.

"Dean, I'm old enough to know who I want to be with," she told him with a sigh. "It's not that I don't appreciate the concern. As my friend, it's great that you want to look out for me, but if I want to spend time with Jess I will," she said definitely.

Neither she nor Dean had any idea that Jess was on his way to find Rory just then. He heard her voice, realised who she was talking with and kept hidden around the corner for now.

"You can't date him again, Rory," said Forester, practically whining as he urged her against such behaviour. "He's not good enough for you."

"That's not your decision to make, Dean," she snapped then. "Maybe I'm not good enough for him, you ever think of that? I certainly wasn't good enough for you, I was practically cheating on you by the end, with Jess, if you remember," she said coldly. "And now you're married to Lindsay, so I don't even know why you care."

"I always care, Rory," he said softly.

Jess wanted to throw up and was about to walk away entirely until he heard Rory's voice again.

"Dean, stop it! Just, don't!" she told him too loudly.

It was then Jess decided to make his presence fault. He came strolling around the corner as if he just got there, with no idea what was happening. Dean had a hold of Rory's wrist which she was fast pulling from his grip. He was leant at such an angle, it was clear he had been trying to make a move and kiss her. She didn't want it, and that was a relief at least.

"There a problem here?" asked Jess, eyes narrowing at Dean.

"No," said Rory definitely, finally getting her wrist free and taking a step back, glaring at Forester. "Dean, your work here is done, you should go home."

"To your wife," Jess threw in for good measure.

Dean did not look at all amused, but he did leave, because he had no choice. He would've liked to wipe the smirk of Jess' face on the way out but settled for deliberately bumping his shoulder on the way to the door. To his credit, Jess didn't react. He would've loved to throw the guy through a wall and probably could've done it too, except he knew Rory would hate another fight. It was that which kept him in check when they dated before, trying to be the bigger man. After Luke's self-help tapes and all, he was especially aware of not being the jerk he had been in the past. He had to make things right with Rory if he could, even if they were never more than friends, it had to be better than the weird estrangement they went through before.

"Hey," she smiled then, though the expression was a little forced and her hand was still rubbing the opposite wrist, the one Dean had grabbed,

Jess didn't say anything, just moved closer and gently reached for her arm, wary of startling her after what just happened with Forester. She didn't stop him from holding onto her arm at the elbow and hand, checking her wrist.

"Guy's a real piece of work," muttered Jess. "He tries that again, I am going to knock his head off."

"I don't think he meant to..." said Rory too softly, feeling strange just from having Jess touching her in such a simple way.

There was a red mark at her wrist, mostly from her pulling to get away than from Dean grabbing at her. He was never that guy, never rough and mean. She felt so safe with Dean, always, but for as much as Jess was the wild and bad boy, she never felt she was in danger with him. He would protect her if she needed it, with his life if necessary, she truly believed that. It was as scary as it was thrilling, but thinking about it just made her smile uncontrollably.

"So," she said then. "What do you think of the inn?" she asked, retracting her arm from his gentle grasp.

"Looks good so far," he nodded, looking around, shoving his hands in his pockets so he wasn't tempted to touch her again, it didn't seem like he should right now.

"Um, it'll be time for lunch soon," she explained. "Sookie's really cooking up a storm."

"I remember how that goes," he said with a look.

Rory smiled when he smiled because she knew why.

"No bailing out of windows, okay?" she warned him.

"No, ma'am," he assured her, the moment duly broken as Lorelai came rushing in followed by a whole bunch of guests.

Lunch time had come upon them a little faster than expected and there was no time for further reminiscing. It felt good though, to just be able to talk, to flirt and tease each other. It was like the old days, before everything got way too complicated.

Neither Rory nor Jess was really sure where they were headed in whatever relationship was happening between them. They were friendly at least, if not full-on friends, and that was a good start. What happened next was anybody's guess, but even as they took seats on opposite sides of the dining room, more than one person spotted Rory and Jess smiling at each other across the space between. Thankfully Lorelai was oblivious for now, she only had eyes for Luke.

_To Be Continued..._


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I really left this fic almost two weeks without updating, didn't I? Oops? Please do not presume that I don't care or that I don't love all those wonderful reviews you peops have been sending to me - I absolutely do look forward to your feedback and very much enjoying reading it all. I hope this chapter will ensure that everyone reading forgives me instantly for the longer gap between updates - I'm pretty sure that it will ;)**

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 5

Rory was in kind of a quandary. This was maybe the first time she had been in a position where her dating options were really simple and clear. In the beginning, starting things with Dean was tricky because she never had a boyfriend before and didn't really know what she was doing. When Jess came along, she was caught between the familiar and a new attraction. Dating Jess had been great most of the time, but she kept on comparing him to what she had before, and that didn't work out too well. After he left, she tried to navigate college dating and had been largely unsuccessful.

Paris said Rory was going through a dry spell. The truth was, Rory just didn't know how to date casually. She always had a boyfriend, and though she didn't need one in order to define her, it was fun while it lasted. Now Dean was definitely out of the picture, being as he was married to Lindsay and all. A week or so ago, she would have said Jess was long gone too, but now he was back and they were talking again, they had both apologised for what went wrong before, and though they had still yet to broach the subject of his 'I love you' six months ago, it was okay. They were okay.

Rory knew if she wanted to make things work with Jess again there was a good chance that she could, but she had no idea what he was feeling and somehow it was just too scary to ask, especially when a voice in her head was still telling her she was a fool to try again with a guy like him. The truth was, Jess had grown up some since she saw him last. Rory liked to think she had too, but just because they _could_ be together now didn't necessarily mean they _should_.

All of this was on Rory's mind as she wandered through the inn. At least the trial run weekend was going well so far. Sure, it was only Saturday afternoon, not even half way through, but still. Babette and Miss Patty were gossiping happily together, Taylor was still wandering around making copious notes. Kirk and Lulu were out on the swing seat on the porch, visible from the window, and as Rory headed outside she spotted her mom and Luke being cute whilst petting the horses. They had been such good friends for so long, she couldn't be sorry they finally seemed to be making the leap into dating. Luke was the best, and had always been a great surrogate father to Rory, even if she did have a real dad too. It took Rory a moment to realise she wasn't the only one watching the scene.

"Hey," she smiled.

Jess looked up over his shoulder to return the look. He had a book in his hand and had been quite happy sat on the front steps of the inn pretending to read it. Truth was he had been keeping an eye on what was happening with Luke and Lorelai. They belonged together, anybody with eyes could see that. It was sickeningly cute actually, but it was what Luke deserved. He had lived the bachelor life a very long time, always trying to be the good guy for everybody else's sake, Jess most especially. If anyone deserved some happiness with the woman he loved, it was his uncle.

"Is that yours?" asked Rory as she sat down beside him, gesturing to the book he held.

"I found it in the library here" he explained with a smirk. "Could say I stole it."

"You'll put it back before you leave," she shrugged easily. "I'll make sure of it."

"Oh, you will?" he almost laughed at that. "Well, you were always the stickler for honesty, I guess. Rory Gilmore, symbol of truth, justice... and age appropriate video tapes," he teased her.

"Shut up!" she said, bumping her shoulder against his own. "I'm not exactly saintly. You know that better than anyone."

She blushed at the very admission. Sure, Rory Gilmore was still pretty pure, virginal certainly, but not the sweet little angel the town saw her as sometimes. Jess hadn't exactly turned her into a girl gone wild, but being with him had allowed her to be more herself somehow. It was hard to explain but when she was around him it had always been the same, she didn't feel like there was any part of her she had to hide. It was no real effort to talk to him, to just be around him. Now they had gotten most of their awkwardness out of the way, they were back to that place and it felt so good, almost too good.

"So, it's finally happening with those two, huh?" said Jess then, clearly more comfortable with changing the subject, same as her.

"Seems like," Rory nodded, following his eye line to her mom and Luke. "I am so happy for them. If they can make it work, and I really hope they can, I wish them all the luck in the world. They deserve this."

"He waited long enough to make his move," Jess considered. "But I guess sometimes you have to play the long game."

He never even glanced at her when he was talking and yet he got Rory's attention. She couldn't be certain that Jess was talking about anything more than Luke and Lorelai's blossoming relationship. Somehow she couldn't help but think he was talking about the two of them at the same time.

"So, Miss Yale Student," he said then, a second subject change in as many minutes. "How was the first year?"

"It was good," Rory smiled widely. "Rooming with Paris has been... an experience, but the other girls were nice, and classes were interesting. It's all good."

"Good," Jess nodded once. "I'd hate to think you were regretting not going to Harvard. I mean, it was the dream, right?"

"It was," she agreed, shifting awkwardly again, knowing as well as he did that Jess himself had been a part of the reason why she switched collegiate allegiance the way she had. "But Yale is a great school, it's Grandpa's alma mater, and I get to come home, see Mom and Luke and everybody as much as I want to," she smiled. "I don't regret it," she assured him, meeting his eyes, immediately wishing she hadn't.

He had this intense gaze that never fall to stick her to the spot and make her want to run all at the same time. That had been true from the first day she met Jess to now, and Rory was overwhelmed by the feelings that had never truly gone away, even after he broke her heart before.

"Um, so, how about you?" she asked then, glancing away. "I mean, you went to California but didn't Luke say you were in New York again now?"

"Yeah," he agreed, running a hand back through his hair. "I was with Jimmy for a couple of months, but all that sun and sand, it was like living in a Beach Boys song."

Rory laughed at that, knowing how much Jess would've hated the constant state of warmth and happy people. It really wasn't his scene, and just picturing him stood on a California beach in his leather jacket and jeans made her grin.

"New York is home, I guess," he shrugged as he continued to explain how he ended up back East. "I was born and raised there, it's where I usually end up. I share an apartment with these guys... It's not much, but I get by."

"You live where you live, work when you need money, and you're just fine," she paraphrased easily from a conversation they had more than two years ago now.

They had been driving around in her car on a night when she was supposed to be tutoring him, a ridiculous idea because he was easily as smart as she was, maybe more so in his own way. Rory never thought of that night as the one where they got in a car wreck or when she was trying to put Jess back on track with his studies. In her memory it was the night when they really connected, more than she ever felt she had connected with anyone. There had been other occasions that meant a lot, but nothing like that night in the car when he promised her all her career dreams were going to come true. When he confessed he had no real dreams like that of his own and yet the way he looked at her made Rory think that whatever goal he was shooting for, maybe she was there with him in his ideal future. It was fat-headed and silly, but that's what she thought, and later, when they were finally dating, he had admitted it was true.

"Rory..." he said then, leaning a little closer.

She swallowed hard waiting to see what he would say, what he would do. Actually Jess never got the chance when Lorelai suddenly appeared.

"Honey, I'm sorry, could I borrow you for a sec?" she asked, looking to Rory.

"Oh, sure," she shook herself from a daze and got up, dusting of the backside of her pants as she followed Lorelai inside.

Jess watched them go, let out a long breath and went back to his book, all the well-planned words in his head remaining unsaid for now.

"What are you doing, Rory?" her mother asked as they searched around the Reception desk for something as yet unknown to the younger Gilmore.

"Helping you, if you ever tell me what we're actually looking for," said Rory helplessly.

Lorelai rolled her eyes.

"The lint brush, but that is not what I meant!" she said definitely as the searching continued. "I swear, your grandma brushes right up against Cletus in her designer gear and then has a complete meltdown because hey, look, horse hair on her skirt! You'd think the world was ending."

"Seems unlikely," said Rory, checking all the desk drawers. "I haven't seen any signs of the apocalypse."

"Well, I don't know, the devil rode back into town last weekend so..."

Rory stopped searching and just stared open-mouthed at her mother. Lorelai noticed and immediately looked a little ashamed of herself.

"I'm sorry," she apologised. "I know he's not as bad as Satan, but... but I'm your mother, Rory. I can't help not exactly loving a guy that broke your heart the way Jess did. The insults are kind of like instinct."

"I know," she nodded her agreement. "I wasn't exactly his biggest fan then either, but y'know, he wasn't the only one who messed up when we were dating."

"Really? I didn't see you running out of town like your butt was on fire or showing up to dinner with a black eye or stealing jewellery from your significant other."

"I don't really think Jess had any jewellery for me to steal..." Rory joked, but was serious again in a moment as Lorelai continued to stare at her. "I know he did bad things," she sighed heavily then. "But that was only part of the way Jess was. You didn't see all the good stuff. Sure, he had an attitude sometimes and he could be thoughtless and a little rude, but with me he was so sweet and caring and... and as much as he was my boyfriend he was a really good friend too. We have so much in common, and he makes me laugh, and he gets me. I didn't think a guy could get me like that, I thought the only people I would ever have that really knew me and accepted every part of me was you and maybe Lane, but then there was Jess and now he's back... I don't think I realised how much I missed having him around until he got back."

Lorelai didn't know what to say to any of that. She knew herself that Rory hadn't been exactly saintly during either of her relationships. She didn't treat Dean all that well after Jess came to town, and maybe she wasn't always the most supportive or understanding girlfriend where the town hoodlum was concerned either. Still, it was a mother's instinct to back her daughter and condemn the guy that ran away and left her.

"For what it's worth, he seems less hoodlumy these days," she said too seriously given the strange word she just made up. "Luke said he's doing okay, trying to make a life, be a grown up."

"He is," Rory agreed. "It's just... it's really good having him around again. I like it, I... I know it probably makes me really dumb, but I like him, a lot."

"That's not dumb, honey," Lorelai sighed and shook her head. "That's just love, I guess."

Rory's eyes widened at the word 'love'. She never did tell Jess out-right that she loved him. She said she thought she had once, in a phone conversation on the day of her graduation from Chilton, and she implied it the other day on the bridge. Six months ago, Jess came to town and made his own confession of feelings before leaving Rory standing for a third time. Now when she was just trying to decide if she was a fool to like Jess at all anymore, her mom used the very word Rory was too scared to consider too seriously up to now - love.

"I don't know if I... or if he... not anymore, I just..." she started to ramble.

Lorelai smiled.

"I know," she nodded. "Sweetheart, it doesn't thrill me to say this but I do think you loved him, I think maybe you still do, and for all the reasons I had to doubt the guy, one thing I was always sure on was how much he adored you."

A moment later she had found the brush she was looking for, and Lorelai rushed off to answer the calls of her own mother from beyond the front door. Rory barely even noticed her mother going, so fixed was she on what had been said here just now. It was going to stick in her mind for a long time yet, she knew that much for sure.

* * *

Dinner had been a success, in everything but assisting Sookie with her kitchen staff situation. Apparently they were all just too good! Rory was sat at a table letting Tom win at chequers and stealing glances at Jess across the way when her mom came and asked her if everything was okay.

"Sure, yeah, I guess," said Rory uncertainly. "Um, you do know Jason is still in the lobby, right?" she said in a low voice, mindful of others hearing, especially Luke.

"Yes, I know," Lorelai sighed. "I can handle him, I think, but could you do me one favour, honey?"

Across the room, Jess had half an ear straining to listen to the quiet conversation between Lorelai and Rory. It was hard to tell when Babette was at their table and wouldn't stop yammering as she and Luke played Yahtzee together. As far as they were concerned, Jess was happily reading and paying no mind to them at all, but a woman with a voice as big as Mrs Dell's was hard to ignore.

"All I know is, you two will make the cutest couple!" she told Luke with way too much volume and enthusiasm. "Y'know this whole town has just been waiting for you to make your move with Lorelai."

"Thank you for the encouragement, Babette" Luke rolled his eyes and tried to encourage her to be more tactful. "I'm glad to make everybody so happy, but if we could just not talk about this when she is right there..." he gesture vaguely towards the woman in question.

Babette turned around just as Lorelai left the room with Rory on her heels, telling her she really didn't mind fetching some CDs from the house. Jess let his eyes wander to the Gilmore girls too, wondering if maybe now would be a good time to give chase. He really needed to talk to Rory and she was about to be very much alone on her walk home.

"So, Jess..." said Babette, and that made the decision for him.

"Sorry, I gotta go," he said, getting up fast, leaving the book on the table as he flung his jacket on and hurried after Rory.

Luke opened his mouth to ask what he thought he was doing but never even got the chance.

Rory was in her bedroom with the door open, sorting through a large pile of CDs when she heard a noise at the back door. She wondered who would be knocking there when suddenly it opened and Jess peered inside.

"Hey," she greeted him with a smile, coming out into the kitchen. "What are you...?"

"I just thought maybe you needed help," he gestured to the CDs in her hands still. "I remember your taste in music had some issues so..."

Rory would've been affronted if she couldn't tell from the smirk that he was teasing her. There was no way Jess was doubting her taste when it came to music. They liked a lot of the same stuff, and he had introduced her to much more that she had fallen in love when they were together, even before that.

"You're still good at evasive," she said, knowing he had to have a real reason for coming here, almost afraid of hearing what it was. "Jess..."

"I'm sorry," he said suddenly. "Rory, I... When I came back here the last time, I just, I didn't know what to do when I saw you. You just seemed to show up wherever I was, and I know you weren't doing it on purpose, but every time I saw you I just thought it'd be easier if I got out of your way."

"It wasn't easier," she shook her head sadly.

"I know that now. I knew it then, on some level, I just... I didn't know how to tell you what I was feeling," he admitted then. "You know how many people inspired me to say 'I love you'?" he asked, and Rory genuinely wasn't sure if that was rhetorical or not.

"I'm guessing not a lot," she said softly, hoping she was right to speak up, eyes on the floor just in case she wasn't.

"No, not a lot," he agreed. "The exact number would be one."

That got Rory's attention in a second. It was shocking enough to hear that Jess loved her in the first place, but to know she was the only one he had ever cared for as much, it was overwhelming. She put the CDs down on the kitchen table with a clatter, turned to her room, turned back again. Her jaw worked with words unsaid, then her hand ran back over her forehead and through her hair. She just didn't know what to do with this information.

"Rory, I'm not... You don't have to say you feel the same way, that's not why I..."

It was as far as he got with that particular train of thought when suddenly she was right in front of him. Jess barely got a chance to breathe before Rory's lips were on his own. He took very little encouragement when she started to kiss him, he had to kiss her back. Jess let his arms wind around Rory as he pulled her close and the moment between them intensified.

When they parted seconds later from their kiss, they were still holding onto each other, both seemingly a little startled by what they'd done.

"Jess, I... I do love you," she confessed. "I actually think I always have."

Those words from her lips made his heart soar and the elation of it showed on his face. He believed her, after all, he had no reason for doubts, not anymore. To think all this was happening because Luke dumped a self-help book in his lap a week or so ago. Maybe there really was something to be said for communication. That being said (or at least thought) Jess didn't really have any more words to share right now. It was too painful not to be kissing Rory, and she didn't seem to mind at all as he took her breath away.

Neither were really aware they were moving until Rory's legs hit the kitchen table. Jess spun her away from the obstacle, which was how she ended up with her back against the wall. It was more than just kissing by now, but then they were both used to that. Making out was what they were best at, always had been. That didn't mean they couldn't talk when they needed to, and apparently they were both willing to admit to being in love. When the time for words passed by, they got back to this, hands seeking skin, and a passion that had been on hold too long.

Rory shifted towards the door and stumbled back through it. She wouldn't have said it was a deliberate move when she dropped back onto the bed, pulling Jess down with her. Maybe in retrospect she would realise it was, but all she knew in this moment was his lips on hers, his hands on her body, the need to just be closer.

Jess was very much aware of where they were and what they were doing. This was as close as he and Rory had ever gotten. There were a few close calls when they were dating, but when he tried his luck she said no, and he wasn't the kind of guy to push after that. Now she wasn't stopping him, in fact Rory was the one who got them to this point, lying together on her bed, locked together like they never wanted to let go, but he had to, now or never.

"Rory," he gasped, pulling back, very deliberately removing himself from her body before he went so far he lost control.

"What...?" she looked shocked and painfully upset by the way he had backed off, picking herself up onto her elbows. "Jess, please, don't run out on me again."

"I'm not," he assured her, even as his eyes betrayed him and flitted to the door. "I swear this is... I love you, Rory, you know that," he reminded her, feeling bad that she looked so hurt, but he had to be better than before, he had to. "I do want you, you have no idea how much, but we just got back to a good place, and I... I can't screw up with you again, I can't," he told her desperately, running a hand back through his hair, looking for an escape that didn't seem possible without making this worse.

"I know, and I don't want it to get screwed up either," she agreed, standing up off the bed right in front of him. "Jess, I... I meant what I said, I love you too. I always thought I did, but these last few days have made me so sure," she told him, putting her arms up around his neck. "I know it'd make more sense to take things slow, but do we really have to?"

She was killing him right now, Jess wasn't sure if Rory realised that but she ought to know. All those times before when she told him no and then apologised because she knew how much that hurt him, emotionally, physically, to be pushed away. Now she was actually asking him to do this, and Jess felt his nerve going. It was ridiculous, they loved each other, he had wanted Rory and only her for more time than his passion-fogged brain could calculate right now.

"Rory," he sighed, even as his fingers ran through her hair. "You have to be sure about this," he told her definitely, hoping he was making himself abundantly clear.

They had been apart a year, but he was pretty sure she hadn't dated any more than he had. Nothing serious, no significant other. It was just like picking up where they left off in so many ways, but this was still a big deal, this was still her first time, with anyone, and his first time with someone he actually gave a damn about. Oh yeah, it was a very big deal. When she kissed him softly then, Jess knew she understood that.

"I am," she told him, pulling back to meet his eyes. "I'm so sure, Jess. I want this, and I want it to be you."

That was all he needed to hear.

_To Be Continued..._


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: So the reaction to the Literati sex replacing the Narco sex was understandably good! lol Now, what about the scene that follows, when Lorelai comes home to find her daughter isn't so virginal anymore?**

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 6

Rory felt different. She should have expected that, she supposed. Taking that leap into the unknown, having sex for the first time, it was always a big deal for any young woman, or man for that matter, she thought. The fact it was Jess that she had done this with, that was kind of amazing.

For the longest time she thought it would be Dean, and just when she had decided it would be Jess he had up and left. Now he was back, and he loved her, and she loved him. They had proven that love here in her bed, and whilst Rory couldn't deny it wasn't a one hundred percent pleasant experience, she wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. Jess had been her first, and right now she wanted him to be her only, forever.

"You okay?" he checked, holding her close still.

"Yeah, I think so," she told him breathlessly.

They were both half-dressed, exhausted and overwhelmed by what just happened.

There were things that needed to be said and they planned to get to that, and yet would never actually get the chance.

Rory started frowning when she heard the front door open and close with a slam and then her mother's voice calling for her. Jess' eyes widened the moment he realised they were about to be busted. Not that they'd really done anything wrong, but Jess knew Rory would be no more keen to be found half-naked here than he would.

Leaping up to get re-dressed and tidied up didn't make Rory feel great, but she coped. She had no idea what her mom was saying, the words 'Kirk' and 'band-aids' seemed to come up, but mostly Rory was just trying to get her underwear back on and throw Jess' shirt at him. They rushed out of the bedroom just in time before Lorelai had a chance to walk in through the open door. She started at their sudden appearance.

"Mom, hi," Rory forced a smile and waved oddly at her mother. "Um, we were... Jess was helping me with the music and then..."

"And then..?" Lorelai prompted, looking at Jess who seemed to be trying to tuck his shirt in without making a big deal about it, and Rory pushing her hair back straight. "Oh my God!" she gasped then spotting the rumpled bed clothes and turning away.

Rory looked pained and Jess hated to see it. This had to be a case of the world's worst timing, but there was no getting away from it now. What happened was done, and he wasn't sorry, even if he would rather not have had Lorelai walk in right at this moment.

"Maybe you should go," said Rory, turning to look at him.

"No," Jess immediately shook his head, grabbing her hand in his own. "No, what we did, we did together," he reminded her, looking at Lorelai when she turned around to face them again. "We both made the decision. I'm not running away."

"Oh, you better run," said Lorelai with a look. "And hey, isn't that what you're good at?"

Rory looked more affronted by that remark than Jess did.

"Mom!"

"I'm sorry, Rory, but this? I can't even..." she shook her head, her hand covering her mouth a moment as she tried to find the right words to say.

Jess could actually see how this was tough on her. A mother coming home to find her only daughter with a guy in her room for the first time ever. That couldn't be fun. At the same time, she was being perhaps a little over the top, and Jess couldn't help but wonder if it was the sex bothering her, or the fact that he was the guy in this situation.

"Lorelai..." he tried to be reasonable, but she wouldn't hear him out, not for a second.

"Don't you talk to me!" she snapped, pointing an angry finger his way.

He wasn't going to take that from her, not now. This was too big a deal to just walk, and he wasn't about to leave Rory here alone to be made to feel bad or guilty about what they'd done, not a chance.

"We are adults," he reminded Lorelai. "Okay, we're both single, and not that it's any of your business, but we love each other."

She hadn't expected that one, she had to admit it, even if only inside her own head. Lorelai had said she suspected Jess loved Rory and vice versa, though it would have suited her better if it were untrue. Still, as much as she half expected them to get back together before long, she really hadn't seen this coming, just leaping into bed together after only one week of 'reconnecting' or whatever Rory had called it when she explained before.

"You do?" said Lorelai, meeting Jess' eyes. "You love her?"

"Yes," he said firmly, clearly as determined in all this as she was.

Rory just knew there was no chance of a calm and reasonable conversation between her mother and the man she just gave herself to. It would be a pretty miraculous situation for any two people in their positions to talk decently, Rory considered. She just needed to split them up for a while, make her mom see that everything was okay.

"Please, Jess, just go," she urged him, getting his attention back, albeit he didn't look impressed when he turned to face her. "She won't calm down with you here," she said softly, a hand on his chest and the other still grasped in his own.

Jess knew she had a point, but he hated it. Walking out on her after what they just did, it felt so wrong, but she was the one asking him to go and Rory did have her reasons. He sighed and put his hand to her cheek, looking deep into her eyes.

"No regrets?"

"None," she promised with a smile he knew was genuine.

He returned that look without hesitation as he leaned in to plant a chaste kiss on her lips.

"That's good," he told her, a whisper against her lips, before he forced himself to turn away.

Jess picked his jacket up and walked out the back door, exactly where he had come in less than an hour before. Rory watched him go and let out a breath she barely knew she'd been holding. He had to go, nothing was going to get resolved until he did, but it hurt to see him walk out the door, even when she had been the one to ask him to.

Rory shook her head and turned towards her mother. Lorelai was still in the hallway, seemingly not sure where to turn or what to say.

"Mom, please, talk to me," Rory urged her, coming closer. "I'm sorry it happened this way, that you walked in to this," she explained, grabbing her mother's arm. "But you know how I feel about Jess, you said yourself that you knew we loved each other."

Lorelai looked at her daughter and felt her heart breaking. She didn't want to be the bad guy here, and she didn't want to spoil what ought to be a special moment for her little girl, the same little girl that was growing up way too fast.

"Yeah, I know," she sighed. "And I also know how he hurt you, over and over," she reminded her sadly.

Rory smiled in spite of that, she couldn't help it.

"We got past that," she explained. "He's changed, I've changed, you know this," she said, practically begging her to understand and see it from her point of view. "These last few days we've really talked, we've worked through things, reconnected. Mom, I love Jess and he loves me," she grinned, gripping her mother's hand tightly, "It's a good thing."

Lorelai sighed, feeling the tears welling in her eyes. She was glowing somehow, her little girl all happy and in love. It would be so easy to hate Jess Mariano for defiling her baby girl, but it was impossible right now, because Rory wasn't a baby anymore. Rory was happy about this, she made an informed adult decision, just like Lorelai had always urged her to do, to think for herself. She couldn't blame her for doing just that.

"Oh, I know," she said, swallowing hard just so she wouldn't cry. "As crazy as it seems right now, I do believe that you two love each other, and even that what you did probably wasn't so bad," she smiled, wiping under her eye before her mascara got destroyed.

"Then I don't understand," Rory shook her head, noticing her mother's tears and wondering at it. "Like Jess said, we're adults, we're single, and we're in love. So, there's nothing wrong with what we did, is there?"

Lorelai couldn't find a way to argue. When you loved somebody, really loved them, and trusted them with everything you had, that was the time to make a choice about this kind of thing. She could hardly preach waiting until you were married or anything like that, so Rory had done exactly what she had been advised by her mom. Wait until you're of age, until the love between you and the guy is as certain as love can ever be, and one other thing.

"No, honey, there's nothing wrong in it exactly," she admitted. "Assuming you were..?"

"Yes, we were safe," Rory confirmed, anticipating the question before it was even completely asked. "And we both wanted this. It was... well, okay, so a little awkward at first because the first time is... you know," she shifted awkwardly, "but it was also beautiful."

Lorelai felt so many emotions all at once, she just didn't know what to do. Tears were streaming down her face as she pulled Rory to her and hugged her tight. Rory hugged back, feeling as emotional as her mother seemed.

"My baby is a woman," she heard Lorelai say. "A woman in love no less," she almost laughed as she pulled back to look at her.

"She is," Rory confirmed.

It was hard to tell if the two of them were laughing or crying at that point, but it didn't really matter. Rory was just glad of her mother's understanding, and Lorelai was only glad her kid had the sense to be safe and sensible when she took such a big step. She meant what she said, her baby was a woman now, in just about as many senses as she could think of. That was going to take some getting used to.

* * *

When Jess got back to the Dragonfly Inn, he came in the front door to find Luke trudging down the stairs, seemingly exhausted and yet grinning.

"What's going on?" he asked curiously.

"Not much," his uncle shrugged. "Kirk being Kirk."

"Yeah, I heard something about him needing band aids," he recalled just vaguely at the Gilmore house when he was throwing on his clothes.

"Don't ask," Luke advised, shaking his head. "Is something different with you?" he asked then.

Jess smirked at the question. Anybody would think he was the virgin girl who just went all the way. They were the ones who were supposed to seem different after, but then he knew today had been kind of a first for him too. Sex was one thing, but making love with Rory was like nothing else. Not that he was about to tell Luke all about that, not right now, probably not at all.

"Er, me and Rory are... I guess we're back together," he said, pushing his hair back of his face.

"Really?" Luke grinned all the wider. "Well, that's great!" he declared, slapping Jess on the back.

"I like to think so."

"Does that mean you're sticking around?"

"We didn't get a chance to talk it all through yet."

"Oh, okay."

There they stood then, awkward as anything in the hallway of the inn, neither knowing what to say next. Neither was prepared to go anywhere else while they were waiting for Lorelai and Rory to come back, and yet neither was really willing to say too much more about what was going on with them either.

"So you and Lorelai," said Jess after a while. "That actually happening this time?"

"I like to think so," Luke nodded, much like Jess had moments before.

His nephew tried not to laugh at how dumb they were both being right now, and over the Gilmore girls no less.

"You think we're gone live to regret this?" he asked, seriously considering the idea they might in fact be crazy.

"Nah, I don't think so," his uncle assured him.

Maybe they were crazy, but Jess couldn't help but agree there wouldn't be any regrets involved. Nobody was ever going to make him as happy as Rory could, nobody, and if Luke was finally getting his chance with Lorelai, well, like he told Rory before, as far as Jess was concerned it was no less than his uncle deserved.

Sticking around in Stars Hollow certainly hadn't been the plan when he came back for Liz's wedding, but Jess couldn't deny he was thinking very seriously about it now. Just as soon as he could, he planned to talk to Rory about all this, that was for sure. For as long as she was here, he couldn't imagine wanting to be anywhere else, not now they were back together. This was home, at least for now.

_To Be Continued..._


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: So, according to the reviews Lorelai's reaction was all good - yay! So on we go to the figuring out of Luke & Lorelai ,and Rory & Jess' first post-coital chat!**

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 7

It felt strange going back to the inn. After what had happened the night before, Rory decided to stay home and sleep there. Lorelai agreed not to say anything and if anybody asked, just say Rory had gone to bed already. It wasn't a lie, she had, just not at the Dragonfly as would be assumed. It had been quite the night all in all, and though Rory had no regrets over what she and Jess had done, she did think it might've been nicer if the afterglow hadn't been cut so short. Spending the entire night in Jess' arms would have been nice, but there was time for that in the future, at least Rory hoped so. She didn't regret what happened and he had seemed willing to stand by her in front of Lorelai, but Rory needed to talk to Jess. It was the lack of serious conversations that messed them up last time, amongst other things. She wasn't going to make that same mistake again.

Walking into the inn early next morning, Rory was a little surprised to literally run into Luke.

"Oh, hey, Luke," she smiled up at him, feeling strange.

She had no idea if he knew what happened with her and Jess. Whilst it didn't strike her as something Jess would do, telling his uncle that he had sex, she had no way of knowing for sure.

"Rory, hi," he smiled back at her. "You okay?"

"Uh, yeah," she nodded, pushing her hair back off her face. "Um, did Jess leave already?"

"No, no, he's still upstairs," Luke assured her, hefting his bag higher on his shoulder. "I have to get back to the diner, but apparently there's a book Jess just has to finish," he rolled his eyes. "He's up in the room if you wanted to..."

"Thanks," Rory nodded hurrying off up the stairs before another word was spoken.

Luke watched her go with a grin he couldn't help. For both their sakes, he really hoped things could work out between Rory and Jess this time. There was no doubt in his mind that they loved each other a lot. If they could just communicate better, but then he was only just now learning to do that himself with Lorelai.

"Hi," the very woman on his mind suddenly appeared at Luke's side.

"Hey," he smiled at her. "Er, Rory was here. She just went up to see Jess," he explained, gesturing up the stairs. "Did you know they were back together?"

"Yes, I did know that," Lorelai nodded once with a smile that wasn't quite comfortable on her face.

Luke lost his own ability to smile at that moment.

"You're still not happy," he sighed, hating that it seemed to be too late for her and Jess to start over and be friends or something.

Lorelai shook her head.

"No, I am happy... kind of" she explained, even as Luke looked questioningly at her. "It's fine, honestly. She loves him and he loves her. Just got to cross my fingers and hope you guys are right about the whole Jess changing and growing up thing, I guess," she shrugged.

"We are," Luke promised her. "He won't make the mistakes he did before, not now. He knows better."

"I hope so, especially now they're... well, closer than ever," she said pointedly, not even noticing that Luke didn't seem to understand what she meant by that. "I'm sorry, Luke. I know Jess is your nephew and everything but I just worry about Rory."

"I know" he agreed. "Sometimes she worries about you too."

"Yeah, but she doesn't need to, at least I hope she doesn't."

"Does she need to?" Luke looked confused and Lorelai didn't wonder at it since she was making little sense here. "I don't..."

"Well, I was just..." she began again, then promptly stopped and looked around in all directions. "Um, come on."

Lorelai grabbed Luke's arm and started walking. There were people in the reception area, and in the lounge. The dining room contained Sookie talking to a few guests and the rest of the cooking staff were in the kitchen. Outside, staff and guests both were wandering around, Taylor with his comment cards and Miss Patty and Babette gossiping up a storm. There seemed to be people just about everywhere, which was great news for the inn, Lorelai supposed, but it was no good when she really needed to have a private conversation with her maybe-boyfriend. Eventually she found an empty space. Stepping in she dragged Luke with her and closed the door, flipping on the light with her other hand.

"Seriously?" he grumbled, dropping his bag down onto the floor between them, though there was barely room to do so. "We're going to talk about this in a closet?"

"Talk about what?" she checked, so nervous that they were really not on the same page after everything that had happened.

"Lorelai..." he began, as exasperated as she was nervous apparently.

"Last night," she cut in, eyes closed as she focused on what she was saying, unable to look at him while she was doing so, at least at first. "What happened with us last night, that was... wow," she said then, finally opening her eyes. "I never expected... or I guess I did, but... I'm glad it happened," she smiled brightly.

Luke let out a breath he hardly knew he had been holding.

"You are? Me too," he agreed.

"That's good."

"Yeah."

There was an awkward pause where they both just grinned like idiots, not sure what in the heck they were supposed to say or do next. It was like being giddy teenagers just falling in love, but not quite as simple somehow. Kids just threw themselves into things and damn the consequences. Luke and Lorelai had been through too much up to now to allow themselves to be so flippant.

"So, um, we're going to do this," said Lorelai eventually. "I mean, date? Be together?"

"I'd like to think so," Luke nodded in agreement.

"Then that's agreed," she smiled, leaning in closer. "Shake on it," she offered.

Luke took the hand she held out, and pulled her even closer, their noses practically touching.

"I can think of better things," he told her, lips suddenly on hers, one arm wrapping around her waist to keep her as close as possible.

Lorelai literally fell into the moment, her feet catching on Luke's bag as she pressed herself up against him. This felt good, and not just the kiss, although that was incredible, it was the knowing this was real, that it was actually going to happen for them, at last. She was trying not to laugh when they parted from their kiss, her hands clasped behind Luke's neck so he couldn't get away even if he wanted to.

"I feel like I'm fifteen," she giggled. "Hiding out in a closet to make out with the hottest guy in school."

"You're crazy" Luke told her, though he was laughing too, because to him, she was just about as perfect as she was nuts right now.

"And you love it," she grinned, knowing it too.

Luke didn't need to answer that, he just kissed her some more.

* * *

Jess wasn't really paying rapt attention to the outside world when there was a forceful knock on the door. He called for whoever it was to come in, not even considering who it might be wanting to see him.

"Hi," said a voice he knew very well and immediately Jess gave his full attention to her.

"Rory," he smiled, diving off the bed and abandoning the book without a moment's thought.

"Hey" she smiled too, though she looked awkward as hell.

There they stood in silence between the door and the bed, neither knowing what to say or do next. She moved as if to kiss him just as he was about to back up. He realised his mistake but too late as she shied away when he thought about moving in. It had to look like the most ridiculous dance from the outside and Rory laughed as a blush rose in her cheeks.

"This is just... How can this be so awkward after we...?"

"I think it's probably because we..." said Jess, copying her own vague gesture and a lack of words for what it was they had done.

"Could be," Rory agreed, shifting her feet, shoving her hands in her back pockets and wondering where all the words had gone that she came to say.

Jess took pity on her. For all that she had come to seek him out, she seemed to have forgotten why or just felt too strange to say what she wanted to. He at least had words in his head enough to say, so he did.

"You figure things out with your mom?" he checked. "I mean, I'm guessing she calmed down some, since I still have all the appendages I had yesterday," he smiled.

"She's okay," Rory nodded. "For what it's worth, I don't think it's you so much as what we did. Pretty sure she would've freaked out if she found me with anybody that way."

Jess frowned a little at that.

"You are an adult, Rory," he reminded her as she seemed to turn into a nervous child before his eyes.

She shook her head.

"I know that and Mom knows it too, she just... she's protective and I guess it was kind of a surprise."

Jess had to admit the last part was certainly true. He hadn't the experience to know how a parent felt when they found their child in a compromising position, no matter what age, but he supposed it wouldn't be fun or at all comfortable. He sighed.

"I guess," he agreed. "Y'know it wasn't exactly a plan I had when I came to talk to you."

"Me either," she told him. "But I'm still not sorry it happened. I meant everything I said last night, Jess," she said definitely, suddenly bold as she stepped in closer to him. "And what we did, I don't regret it, not at all."

She was practically shaking with nerves and it was endearing in it's way. She couldn't claim to be a virgin anymore, terrified or otherwise, but this was still a big deal. Everything with them always had been, and last night had been Rory's first time ever. So many men would take what they wanted and cast a woman aside, but for all of his supposed bad boy reputation, Jess was never that guy, especially not with someone as special as Rory. He would hope she knew that, even if no-one else did.

"C'mere," he urged her, pulling her closer and kissing her softly

What started out sweet and gentle soon intensified into something else entirely. Last night had been a huge deal, and they did need to talk about it, but they had gotten as far as determining neither of them regretted it and that seemed to be enough for now. They loved each other, they wanted to let this happen. Rory knew it was supposed to be even better the second time, less painful and awkward certainly. She so wanted this to happen and could think of no reason not to let it when she and Jess ended up on the bed together.

"We should really talk," she said anyway, between fevered kisses and gasps of passion.

"We should," he replied, even as he worked the buttons of her shirt open.

There was definitely a conversation still to have about the future, but her fingers tangled in his hair and his lips on her neck were clouding judgement on both sides.

"Important conversations to have," she mumbled against his skin as he helped her out of her shirt.

"Real important," he agreed, feeling her hands stray to his belt.

"Is the door locked?" she asked and that made Jess break out of the passion filled haze long enough to smirk.

"So, talking later then?"

"Oh, yeah."

* * *

"Wow," said Rory from the circle of Jess' arms.

"Yeah, I'll agree with that," he smiled, kissing her bare shoulder.

There was hardly room enough in the bed for two, being a single and all, but they managed, just as they had last night in Rory's own room. The place wasn't important it was the people that mattered, the love that existed between them, the passion that was spent for now but very real when it erupted between them. Rory felt like she could happily stay here forever, just like this. Of course, that all depended on how things were going from here, hence the conversation she and Jess were supposed to have been having when they fell into bed together... again. Even now his lips at her neck and fingers on her skin were distracting her, in the best way possible, of course, but this so wasn't a good time when they really had to figure some things out.

"Jess..." she complained half-heartedly, shifting onto her side to meet his eyes. "We really do need to talk."

"I know," he sighed, settling down beside her. "This is kind of a big deal, us being us again," he said, reaching out to push Rory's hair behind her ear.

"Exactly. I mean, it's great, I'm glad, but what happens after this?" she asked in earnest. "You have a life in New Yok, an apartment and a job..."

"A crappy apartment and a minimum wage job," he scoffed "Rory, I... I left here thinking we would both be better off with me gone. Honestly, after California, I had no idea what I was going to do, where I was going to go. New York was like a default setting, and it has not been fun," he told her definitely, hand lingering at her cheek still. "Y'know, I spent so long thinking all I wanted to do was get out of Stars Hollow, but once I was gone, all I could think about was coming home to you."

Rory wanted to cry and smile all at the same time at those words. Sometimes Jess said such beautiful things. She was so happy that they were getting a second chance. At the same time, it hurt to realise how much time they had wasted up to now.

"Why did we let things go so wrong?"

"You and me... it was complicated," he shook his head slightly, "but it doesn't have to be now. I couldn't... I didn't know how to be the guy you deserved, Rory, but I can do it now, I can handle it, I swear."

"Me too," she agreed, pushing herself closer. "I want you to talk to me, Jess, when you need to, I mean. I want us to treat each other better and make it work. It's all I want."

"You are all I want," he countered, kissing her softly.

"So, you're going to stay in Stars Hollow?" she checked, fingers absently playing with his hair.

"Yeah, I'm going to stay," he told her with a smile. "I mean, I'll be honest, if we could start over away from this crazy place, I'd probably like it better, but I'd never ask you to leave, not now, not when everything you have is here," he explained honestly. "You have family and Yale and your house. This is where you need to be. It's your home, so for as long as you're here, I guess it's my home too."

She kissed him this time, long and deep, so he knew how much it meant to her. Jess said his life wasn't so great in New York, that it wasn't a big deal to give it up, but it was. It was the freedom he was letting go of in order to stay here with her, for her, because this was her home.

"Y'know," he said, deliberately pulling back however reluctantly, "we should really get up before your Mom finds us...again," he smirked.

"Oh God!"

Rory leapt out of bed just as soon as that thought hit home, throwing on her clothes like a crazy person. Jess stayed put a moment, watching her with an appreciative gaze that was a boyfriend's privilege at such a moment. Boyfriend. He felt weird about that term the first time it applied to him. Now, he didn't care what title he was given, just so long as he was with Rory. They had wasted way too much time already.

Rory caught him staring and blushed just like always.

"Jess!" she admonished him, though was still smiling even as she threw his pants at his head.

He laughed at her and she soon joined in, the two of them practically giddy in the glow of being back together and in love. They were both soon dressed and met by the door more by accident than design. She reached for the door knob but he pulled her back and planted one more kiss on her lips. Rory met is eyes in the next moment wondering at the intensity of his gaze upon her.

"I love you," he told her, so much like that moment six months ago, only this time he wasn't running

"I love you too," she replied with a smile.

This time, it was going to be okay.

_To Be Continued..._


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Anyone who didn't get the memo yet - I got sick. It was a mutant cold and it put me out of action for a while, so the fic suffered, but hey, I'm back now! Hope y'all enjoy the update ;)**

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 8

"You had sex with Jess?!"

Immediately that Lane exploded, Rory tried to shush her. She was in no way ashamed of what she and Jess had done last night (and again this morning) but she could use the whole band not hearing her business that way. Still, she couldn't help but laugh at Lane's exclamation and her expression too. She looked utterly stunned, and Rory wasn't all that amazed to realise it. Jess only came back to town a little over a week ago for his mother's wedding, and the last time she and Lane talked about that situation, Rory still had no idea how she was going to deal. Now suddenly she was here telling her best friend that not only had she decided to reboot her relationship with Jess, but she had taken that big step and had sex too.

"It really wasn't a plan," she admitted. "I mean, I knew as soon as I saw him again that I still had some kind of feelings, but... I don't know, everything was left so undefined before. Then we were just standing in my kitchen having this really intense conversation. He said he loved me, and I kissed him, and... and it just happened," she smiled so wide.

Lane didn't know what to say. She had seen the damage done when her best friend's relationship with Jess blew apart. Because of her role as Rory's BFF, she always backed her and supported her no matter what, but in her heart Lane knew that not every part of the split was Jess' fault. They probably would've had a better shot if he was a little less selfish and closed off, but at the same time, Rory could've been a better girlfriend. She had a habit of comparing Jess to Dean, acting as if she made a big mistake moving from one guy to the other. Lane never really thought that was fair, though she said not a word about it. She still wouldn't now. Chief amongst her thoughts was one question she really needed the answer to, and it spilled out of her mouth ahead of everything else.

"So, how was it?"

Rory blushed fiercely just thinking about answering that. She pushed her hair back off her face and shifted uncomfortably, knowing she had to say something.

"It was... beautiful," she admitted. "A little awkward at first, obviously, but after that," she smiled all the more. "The second time was even better."

"I'll bet it was," Lane grinned back at her. "Wow, you actually did it, and with Jess! You always said you thought he'd be the first," she recalled.

"Took a little while," said Rory thoughtfully. "But I am glad it was him. Y'know, I admit, recently, me and Dean have been talking again and... well, I was starting to think maybe...

"Rory, he's married!"

"Lane?" called Zach from the next room. "Are you coming to practise or what?"

Neither girl was sure if he had heard her explosion about Dean's relationship status, but Rory in particular hoped not. Lane had her hand clamped over her mouth a moment and then mouthed 'sorry' to her friend before calling to Zach she would just be a few more minutes.

"I know it would've been wrong," said Rory quietly. "And not just because Dean is married. I did love him, and I think a part of me always will, but it's not the same, it never was. I am so in love with Jess, I'm not sure I ever stopped being in love with him actually. It took him coming back and us having a chance to reconnect for me to realise, I guess."

Lane sighed dreamily, thinking how great it must be to be in love like that. She and Dave had been on a good path until he up and moved to California. Now she had no-one and even if she had, she doubted it would be anything like what Rory and Jess had. For all the drama in the beginning, it was clear from the get go they were perfect for each other, and finally it seemed they were going to get some kind of happy ending.

"So, he's staying, right?" she checked then. "I mean, you're not running off to New York or wherever."

"Nope, both staying right here," Rory grinned in response. "Jess said he would rather be with me away from the wackiness of the Hollow, but he understands that this is my home. Honestly, I don't think he hates it as much as he says. For one thing, Luke means more to him than he's willing to admit."

"Maybe," considered Lane. "But he wouldn't be staying if not for you, Miss Gilmore," she told her with a giggle. "He really loves you."

"I really love him."

"Then you two are just so lucky!"

"Oh, we might not be the only ones either," said Rory then, even as Zach hammered on the door and Gil warned everybody he had to be gone by six to pick up his kids. "Maybe I should tell you later."

"No, no. Tell me now, just one sec," said Lane, rushing over to the door and opening it so suddenly that Zach almost fell in on top of her. "Five minutes, guys, and we will be done. Just sit down and shut up for that long, okay?" she urged them, sounding perhaps a little too much like her own mother.

Just as soon as Lane returned to sit down on the bed again, Rory spoke fast.

"My mom and Luke might be just as lucky as me and Jess. They're together now," she grinned.

"Luke and Lorelai? At long last!" enthused Lane. "Wow, I was starting to think that would never happen."

"I know, but it has. Ever since Liz's wedding things have been different, and then last night after me and Jess... well, I talked to my mom and she admitted she and Luke had kissed and things might be happening there."

"Great, that's great," said Lane, still smiling but perhaps not quite so genuinely now. "I mean, you have Jess, Lorelai has Luke, and I have... pain-in-the-butt band-mates," she sighed heavily.

"Aaaw, Lane," Rory sympathised, leaning in to hug her friend. "It'll happen for you, give it time."

"I know" she sighed once more. "But hey, in the meantime, I intend to live vicariously through you. So anything else good happens, my ears are ready for the details."

"_All_ the details?" asked Rory as they pulled apart, the look on her face bordering on the grossed out.

"Well, not _all_ the details. What am I, a pervert?" said Lane shaking her head. "No detailed drawings, just a nice blurry water-colour," she explained, making Rory giggle.

"That's a deal," she promised, back to smiling widely.

She was just so happy right now.

* * *

It was getting late in the day, almost time to close up the diner. Jess had been waiting to talk to Luke about his plans for the future since he really didn't feel like saying anything where the whole town could hear. All it took was for Miss Patty, Babette, or even Kirk to hear half a sentence and a whole invented story was around the town within three point five seconds. Jess couldn't handle that, not now, not when things were so good. It was hard to keep the smile off his face actually, which was a little different for a guy like him.

Being back with Rory was literally like a dream come true, and for all that he had spent two years trying to get out of this place, it didn't seem half so bad this time around. Maybe it was just because Jess got to make the choice now. Nobody sent him here or tried to keep him tied down when his only wish was to run. He offered to stay because he wanted to be with Rory. What he told her was the truth, that this was his home for as long as she was here. He meant every word of that, but it was easier said than done.

After all he had put him through, Jess knew Luke wound still help him out if he could, but to stay here at the apartment, maybe even take on shifts in the diner until he could get another job, that might be asking too much.

When closing time finally came and Luke locked up the front door, Jess came down from upstairs where he had been sat waiting for this moment. He grabbed a cloth and started wiping down tables without being asked, stacking chairs up as he went. When Luke turned around and saw him, he smiled.

"You really don't have to do that," he told his nephew. "You don't work here anymore."

"I know," said Jess, not looking up from what he was doing. "But I, er, I actually wanted to talk to you about that, the working here thing," he said vaguely, putting the chairs up onto the next table over.

He got a surprise when he looked up and found his uncle right in front of him. Luke put a hand on Jess' shoulder and smiled.

"Jess, I told you before, I'm always here for you. Now if you need a job or a place to sleep or anything, it's yours," he told him easily.

Jess never did know how to take that type of kindness, or any type most of the time. His father was absent for almost all of his life, and he might've been better off if his mother had been too. So-called friends came and went, and nobody cared much for young Jess Mariano, nobody until he came here to Stars Hollow, to his uncle, and to Rory. They wanted what was best for him, to help him and support him. It hadn't seemed much like when Luke wanted to help in the beginning, and Jess hadn't felt he needed it even when it did. He knew better now, and he was grateful.

"It'd only be temporary," he said, eyes to the floor a moment before he made himself meet Luke's gaze. "Me and Rory are... well, you know we're back together, and she needs to be here, so that's where I'm gonna be too. Eventually I'll find a job and hopefully get a place of my own, but for now..."

"For now, you're gonna stay right here," said Luke definitely. "I can always use an extra pair of hands in the diner, and hey, you're the one who helped me make that apartment big enough for two."

Jess smirked at that, remembering the day vividly.

"So long as we don't have to hold hands and skip."

Luke chuckled at that, mimed smacking Jess upside his head but just messed up his hair instead. He immediately regretted it when his fingers came away gunged up with gel.

"Finish those tables, smart-mouth," he said, still smiling despite the mock-demand.

"Yes, Uncle Luke," Jess smirked, saluting with his free hand as he went back to wiping surfaces and stacking chairs. "And thanks," he called behind him, even as Luke disappeared out back.

He pretended not to hear him but Jess knew better. Luke took thanks about as well as he himself took help, but it was cool. They had an understanding here, a deal between two adults rather than a kid feeling like he was being talked down to by an authority figure he barely knew and couldn't quite respect before. Above all Jess knew that having Luke take him back in at the diner and the apartment meant staying with Rory was going to be that much easier now. That alone made him smile.

* * *

"See, I told you there wouldn't be a problem," said Rory with a smile.

She was sat on her bed in her own room where she had taken the phone just as soon as she realised Jess was calling. She would've questioned why he didn't come over but it was pretty late, besides which, he still seemed to have reservations about just showing up at the Gilmore house right now, even though Rory assured him Lorelai was definitely done with being mad at him for 'deflowering her baby girl'.

"I know you did," he agreed, similarly sat on his own bed at the diner apartment whilst Luke was in the shower. "So, that's it, definitely staying. Too late to change your mind and tell me to take a hike," he joked, and yet somehow Rory couldn't help but wonder if there wasn't a hint of genuine worry in his voice.

"Jess, I am not going to change my mind about you," she promised him. "After everything we've been through, nothing can tear us apart this time. I mean, not unless you're changing your mind..."

"Not a chance, Gilmore," he told her definitely. "This time is for keeps, you're not getting rid of me again."

"Best thing I heard all day," she sighed happily, laying back on her bed.

"Really?" he smirked. "'Cause the best thing I heard today was a beautiful woman telling me she loved me and practically screaming my name."

He didn't have to see Rory to know she was blushing the deepest shade of red at that remark. She was laughing and yelling his name in a whole different way then, admonishing him for saying such things to her, but the embarrassed look on her face was definite and easy enough to see in his mind's eye.

"What? I was just being honest," he said, laughing along with her, at least for a moment anyway. "Why does a couple of blocks away suddenly seem like way too far?" he asked so seriously it made Rory shiver.

"I don't know," she lied, knowing full well what he meant, but not willing to think about it.

Just talking about what they had done together this morning, as well as last night, it made her want him all over again. There were impracticalities to that, what with her mom and his uncle living with them at their respective homes. Still, it wasn't as if that was all there was to this relationship they shared, and there would be opportunities in the not-so-distant future, Rory was sure.

"You picked a good time to come home," she said then. "School's out 'til September. I am pretty much all yours until then."

"I like the sound of that," said Jess, and though it probably came off like he was still talking about sex he actually wasn't, which he was quick to point out. "I missed you, being able to just be around you, talk to you, kiss you," he told her, thinking of so many long days and nights when they were apart.

Rory bit her lip as happy tears filled her eyes. Jess wasn't much for fancy words most of the time. He knew them well enough, he had to from all his extensive reading but he was usually pretty straight-forward in what he said and what he meant. Sometimes though, he expressed himself so beautifully, and Rory loved that it was probably only her that ever got to hear such things from him.

"I love you," she told him softly.

"Love you too," he promised, as he heard the water shut off in the bathroom and knew Luke would be out soon. "Goodnight, Rory."

"Goodnight, Jess, see you tomorrow."

It was so good to hear her say that, Jess thought, as he hung up the phone and stared at it a moment. He would see her tomorrow, and the next day, and after that. No waiting and wondering if and when he might be here again, or when she might show up on his doorstep. He never had really expected Rory to come find him, but he had dreamt about it, as he dreamt of coming back here. Some of those dreams had turned into nightmares when he let worry and fear take hold. Things just seemed to screw up all around Jess Mariano and around those he cared about. He felt like a magnet for crap sometimes, and it still bothered him when he thought about it too much, but now wasn't the time. Right now things were good. He had a job, a place to stay, and the woman he loved. The smile was back on Jess' face and he couldn't see it leaving any time soon.

_To Be Continued..._


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: This fic is probably the least dramatic / most fluffy of all my Literati stories right now, and honestly, that shouldn't change much. I'm loving writing it, probably even more than any of you are enjoying reading it. That said, I do appreciate all the lovely reviews you folks have been leaving for me - thank you :)**

_**(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)**_

Chapter 9

Jess had to go pick up the remainder of his stuff from New York. There wasn't much, nothing that he had trusted his so-called room-mates to look after, but a few things he had in a storage locker that he wasn't prepared to let go of. He also had to pick up the last paycheque from his messenger job, and another from a restaurant he helped out at for a while. Rory offered to take the trip with him, until Jess told her he planned to leave first thing in the morning, getting up when Luke did at four-thirty and pretty much heading straight out. Rory's expression had been a sight to see, horrified as she was at the prospect of being out of bed, dressed, and ready for a road trip at such an ungodly hour. Jess assured her he was fine going by himself and he would catch up with her later.

Strangely, Rory seemed to wake up early anyway. Not quite as early as would have been necessary if she had been travelling with Jess but still the wrong side of eight for a day when she had nothing she needed to do. It took a moment to realise that the reason was because somebody was rapping on the front door.

"Mom?" she called, levering herself out of bed and padding out into the hall.

"I got it, sweets," Lorelai promised as she came hurrying down the stairs, fixing a clip into her hair.

She rushed for the front door as someone continued to hammer on it like the world was ending. Lorelai got a real surprise when she opened said door and found Luke on the other side looking pretty freaked out.

"Luke, what happened?" she asked immediately, sure something bad had occurred from the look on his face.

Rory came rushing the moment she heard the barely-veiled panic in her mother's voice. Luke was worried and that was never good, since the guy rarely let things get to him and even less often showed emotion. There were few people that could cause such feeling in Luke, and given that Lorelai and herself were stood in front of him, completely oblivious as to what was going on, Rory immediately thought of her boyfriend.

"Is Jess okay?" she checked, glad of her mother's arm around her the moment she arrived at her side.

"Er, yeah, Jess is fine, as far as I know anyway," Luke shook his head. "I haven't heard from him since he left this morning, but what I came here for was... it's about Liz," he explained.

Rory felt bad for the sigh of relief she let out then. If something was wrong with Luke's sister then obviously that wasn't good, but she couldn't help but be glad to know Jess was okay. Lorelai ushered her boyfriend inside and encouraged him to sit down on the couch. She took the chair and Rory perched on the arm, wondering what news she was about to hear.

"So I just got a call from a hospital up in Maine. Seems Liz and T.J. got into a car accident," Luke explained.

"Oh my God, Luke, I'm so sorry. Are they okay?" his girlfriend asked worriedly as she reached for his hand.

"I don't know really. I mean, they're alive, not in any real danger from what I could tell," he told her, as she held onto his fingers. "There was something about fractures, but it was pretty bad line and I have to admit I was a little panicked by the whole thing."

"Poor Liz and T.J.," said Rory with genuine sympathy in her tone.

She didn't care much for Jess' mother and she had good reasons for that, but the idea of anyone breaking bones in a car wreck was not a happy one. Besides, Liz and T.J. had been nothing but polite to her at their wedding, she couldn't wish anything really bad to happen to them, it just wasn't in Rory Gilmore's nature to do so.

"So, what happens now?" asked Lorelai worriedly, pushing her hair back off her face. "Um, do you need to go?"

"I should," Luke nodded. "If Jess were here... well, I don't know that he would necessarily want to go and see Liz right now, but he could at least help cover the diner while I'm gone. If I go, I mean, like I said, I'm not even sure how bad it is, whether they need me at all."

He looked panicked and it was just too weird for the Gilmore girls. Luke got stressed sometimes, usually over things nobody else would care about. He allowed Taylor to wind him up so tight, he let Kirk get to him, lost his mind over people talking on cell phones in the diner, chewed out Bootsy just for breathing when he was in one of his bear with a sore head moods. Nothing serious seemed to rattle him. He just took control, helped out, did whatever he could. It occurred to Lorelai that was exactly how he behaved when she or Rory needed him, when Jess needed him. When it came to Luke himself needing help, he wasn't great at asking for it. Lorelai had a feeling that's what this was about right now.

"Okay," she said, taking control the way Luke always did when she was panicking. "Well, you should go, regardless," she told him definitely. "You won't be happy until you see they're okay, so I'll come over to the diner now, we'll get your stuff packed. Um, Rory, honey, could you go get dressed and... oh, I don't know what we're going to do about the diner. Can Caesar run it for a while?" she asked Luke.

"He can for a little while today, but I could be gone for days..." he said, shaking his head.

"We'll handle it," said Rory suddenly, getting shocked stares from both adults as a result. "Hey, we may not be able to cook but we can waitress and clean up and all the other stuff. It's just for a few days and we did it before."

"Yes! Yes, we did that!" said Lorelai with a sudden grin and a shed load of enthusiasm as she recalled the time.

Sure, it had been bad for Luke when his uncle died, but she had definitely enjoyed her time waiting tables in the diner, yelling out the old fashioned terms for various dishes and numbering Luke's tables while his back was turned. She and Rory, plus Jess and Caesar, they had made it work somehow.

"I don't know, Lorelai," groaned Luke, adjusting his cap. "I mean, it's a lot of work and you just..."

"We can do it, Luke," she insisted, hands on his shoulders as she made him focus on her eyes. "Rory is here all Summer, no college studies to worry about. Jess will be back later today, he has all the experience we need. Caesar can cook, I can fit in shifts around the inn, and we can cope until you get back, okay?"

Luke stared back into her eyes and would hardly believe how lucky he was to have Lorelai in his life. She was just this amazing person, in so many ways he couldn't even begin to describe. In five minutes she had managed to calm him down from a real panic about his sister, the diner, and a hundred other things, as well as solve every crazy problem he had been coming up with for the past half hour.

"Have I told you how amazing you are?" he asked her helplessly.

"It was implied," she shrugged, happy to fall into the hug he gave her and the kiss that came after.

Rory backed off to her room when the kissing started. It wasn't that she wasn't totally happy for her mom and Luke, she was genuinely glad they were together, but bearing witness to their PDA seemed a little wrong still. Back in her room she turned one way and then the other, torn between picking out an outfit appropriate for work in the diner, and calling Jess. It was pointless and she knew it, even as she picked up her phone, thumb soon hovering over the speed-dial for Jess' cell. If he wasn't driving there was still a chance he wouldn't answer because he had his hands full or was too busy or whatever. If he did pick up, Rory wouldn't know what to say to him. Telling Jess about his mom and T.J. when she didn't even have all the information, it would be unfair. She didn't feel right about doing it, especially when Luke probably meant to do it himself. Tossing the phone back on the bed, Rory headed for the closet to pick out clothes already. Luke needed her and Mom to help him first. When Jess got home later, then they would deal with his reaction to what had happened. One step at a time.

* * *

It was almost two in the afternoon when Jess came past the 'Welcome to Stars Hollow' sign. His early start had definitely helped in getting him to New York and back in pretty decent time. The remainder of his stuff, meagre as it was, filled the trunk and back-seat of his car, and in his back pocket he had one cheque and a reasonable sized chunk of change from two jobs he had now left behind. It was weird how Jess found himself smiling, knowing he was headed home. Stars Hollow, a place he tried to escape so long and now he honestly couldn't wait to start a new phase of his life there with the woman he loved, and the only member of his family he could truly rely on.

Pulling up outside of the diner, Jess was a little surprised to find he had to park behind Luke's truck, and that it seemed to be packed up for a journey of some kind. He was frowning as he climbed out of his car and met Luke coming the other way down the sidewalk. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Lorelai and Rory rushing between tables through the large glass panes of the diner windows. Something was wrong.

"Who died?" he asked Luke straight.

Honestly, it could be taken as a joke that came off the back of Luke's grave expression, or an actual reference to the time Lorelai mentioned earlier, helping out when Uncle Louis passed. Luke wasn't sure which Jess was going for but it really didn't matter anyway.

"Nobody died," he said definitely. "But... well, the thing is, I got a call from a hospital in Maine. Your mom and T.J., they had an accident, nothing life threatening," he said quickly, his hand on Jess' shoulder. "At first, I was just going up there to see what was happening, but then Liz finally called me herself and, well, each one of them broke an arm and a leg, so anyhow, they can't run the Renaissance Fair booth for a couple of weeks. So they asked me to come and help them out, and I, unfortunately, am a sap, so..."

He trailed off, rolling his eyes at himself for being a good person apparently. Jess couldn't blame him for that. If it wasn't for Luke being such a fine human being, Jess was sure he wouldn't have turned out the way he had so far. This man turned his life around, and between Luke and Rory, well, Jess was pretty sure he owed everything to the two of them. It sucked to have his uncle disappear out of town right when he got back here, but Jess understood.

"Er, please tell me you weren't waiting around to ask if I wanted to go with you?" he asked, shaking his head.

Luke almost laughed at his expression.

"No, definitely not," he told him with a smile. "I mean, I would take you if I thought for a second you'd wanna go, but I know how things are with you and your mom, so... well, actually, I was hoping that you would do me an even bigger favour," he said seriously, looking his newphew in the eye. "You asked me the other day if you could work in the diner again. Well, how about while I'm away you run it for me?"

Jess' mouth dropped open so much he was surprised he didn't feel his chin crack on the pavement.

"Me? Run your diner?" he checked, one hand over his chest in case Luke didn't quite understand that by me he actually meant himself, Jess Mariano, the screw up nephew who had flouted every chance Luke had given him for way too long.

"That's the idea," he told him definitely. "I mean, Lorelai has offered to pitch in, Rory too, but they don't know how everything works, and... well, they're great but..."

"I get it," Jess smiled, knowing exactly why his uncle was floundering.

The Gilmore girls were amazing people, Rory in particular as far as Jess was concerned, but he knew Lorelai always held the same qualities in Luke's eyes. Of course when it came to running the diner, well, he remembered what happened the last time. Never short of enthusiasm, that was true, but Lorelai and Rory could get carried away, caught up in things, and were sometimes easily distracted too. Still, Jess was kind of stunned to be put in charge of everything.

"So, will you do it?" asked Luke, snapping Jess from an apparent momentary daze. "It shouldn't be much more than two weeks, maybe three tops," he assured his nephew. "You have the girls and Caesar, and if anything goes wrong I'm just a phone call away. Not that I expect something to go wrong, but..."

"I'll do it," said Jess suddenly, nodding his head. "I can handle it, Luke," he promised. "I mean, hey, all the favours you've done for me, gotta pay you back somehow."

Uncle and nephew shared a rare smile then. Luke had said before that Jess owed him nothing, but he appreciated the sentiment. He slapped him on the shoulder in thanks, even pulled him into a brief manly hug, then ruffled his hair as he had when the man was just a boy. He had grown up so much recently.

"Ah, geez!" Jess complained as he straightened out his hair. "Just go already!" he told his uncle, laughing even as he seemed to get annoyed.

Luke ducked inside to say goodbye to Rory and then Lorelai, the latter getting a pretty serious smooch that Jess saw through the window. He waved when Luke was finally in the truck and driving away and then turned to his own vehicle to retrieve some of his stuff. Walking into the diner to see Rory smiling at him from behind the counter where she was pouring coffee, knowing he was running this place for at least the next fourteen days, it was so weird, and yet Jess found he kind of liked the idea. Luke really had to trust him to allow him to do this, and that meant a lot.

_To Be Continued..._


End file.
